If That's Your Reason
by Chocolate Muggle
Summary: Lovina Vargas is a foul-mouthed woman compared to her bipolar opposite twin sister.She was about to have a nice romantic date with Antonio, but he just had to break it off. He told her things she hadn't heard in years when they were going out.Cue Gilbert,who bets that he only needs a month to capture her broken heart.Previously known as Because We're Both Sorrowful People.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I own Hetalia only when pigs can fly. Or when Hidekaz decides to hand it over to me.

* * *

A room filled with cream-colored walls, a bedside table placed right next to the well-made single bed, the dressing table neat and tidy with no make-up in sight. Hah. Guess what people.

I'm Lovina-Fuck-it-all-Vargas. And that ain't my room, at least not the room related thing, just the dressing table. Don't judge. It's bad manners. Well, who am I to judge about manners. Where was I? Oh yeah, I don't now. So let's skip to wherever I can remember.

I pulled up my black stocking that reached my thighs and put a ruffled long sleeved white blouse. Just so you know, that blouse was fucking tight. And let me say that it wasn't me who got this blouse to show my curves because my stupid sister bought it for me and… and…And I had nothing else to wear, dammit!

Oh yeah, I placed my red hairband with a ribbon on the right side to keep my bangs in place. Don't want them to cover my face. Trust me, those advertisements with chicks on them in a breezy weather are just fakes. No one in real life can have the hair perfect moment in a breeze unless you're a fucking Disney princess, got it? Just to be sure, I wore one of those black shorts, those really short ones and wore zipped leather heeled boots. You know, the ones where if you feel really kinky, you fold the brim and make it look short? Yeah, those. Don't judge. I love these.

And before you ask why I'm dressing up like this, let me tell you to save your ass from working hard to ask me. You see, there's this certain Spaniard I have my eyes on and I really love him and I want to confess my love to him and smack him on the lips and hugged him and blah blah blah. Okay, I lied. Antonio-I'm-Oblivious-But-I'm-Smokin'-hot-Carriedo asked me out for dinner. Can you believe it? No? Well let me tell you one thing. I've been seeing him for like,5 months? Haha. Beat that you fuckers who wanted to hook up with him. He's mine! Back off or I'll bite your head off.

Ahem. I got sidetracked. In any case, make up? Check. Attire? Check. Everything else? Check. Fuck it, why do I love dressing up like those strict business women who loves playing hard to get? Wait, I do love playing hard to get. I smiled at myself, staring into the mirror. I grabbed the necklace he gave me once and kissed it like how that Potato Bastard would kiss his Iron Cross, only less gross.

I ran downstairs, almost tripping on the third step of the fleet of stairs. Dammit, why did Feli have to decide to get them glass and not wood? I sighed and turned to the said girl in the kitchen.  
"Feli! I'm leaving and I do not want any Potato Bastard stench in the house, got that?!" I shouted and slammed the door. Wait, why was there no answer?

No answer meant something is off. Feliciana is one to be noisy, cheery, annoying, irritating and giggly. I peeked my head in and noticed that she was on the phone. Figures.

I sighed calmly. Little did I know who she was talking to with a stupid grinning face that also changed to a heartbroken smile.

* * *

13 minutes early. Lovina was proud of herself. This was a record since Antonio had to do all the waiting. She giggled and put on a smirk that didn't fit her get up. "I wonder what that bastard will say now?"

Cue said bastard coming her way with a goofy grin that looked fake. But hey, she wasn't one to judge. She simply acknowledge his presence and put on her Lovina's-Famous-Scowl.

"You're late, bastard." She pouted and made sure she looked like she waited for at least an hour and half. Antonio ruffle through her back hair, pissing the other off.

" Sorry 'bout that, Lovi. It's pretty cold out here and… I wouldn't want any lingering eyes on you, so wanna go in?" And said brunette put on his only-for-Lovina-gentle-smile. Yeah, Lovina blushed at that. She was sure as hell she was as red as her favorite fruit.

"Aw,Lovi. You're as red as tomato. So cute, mi tomate" Antonio smiled at her while dragging their intertwined hand inside the awaiting French restaurant. As much as Lovina wouldn't admit it, she felt flattered at that compliment but hey, she's one to live on pride. So when she gains the title of bad-bitch- but-actually-Tsundere, she gains the task to act like one.

" Shut up, stupid." Yeah, a flustered face right there. She turned to the one who was easily dragging her in as if he was carrying a bag of feathers. First time looking made her mind go " Holy shit he looks good" and "ASDFGHJKSBDJBCBSJ/ [error] [error] Brain malfunction". Then she looked for a second time, taking a good look at that tanned complexion of his.  
Something was off about him as well. He looked like he was in pain. Being the slightly oblivious to pain she is, she softly asked " Are you injured or something? You look stupid with that pained smile. We can call it off if you want."

"No no, Lovi. It must be today. I really have to tell you something." Again he sighed and looked flustered. Lovina just nodded and walked into the restaurant after claiming back her hand from that evil hand that grabbed hers.

* * *

I sank into the bed, making sure my face is covered by my huge ass pillow. Fuckety fuck. Antonio can go die with his new girlfriend while I rot with my future cats. No offense, Roma-cat, you're my favorite. Wanna know what happened? Well, I'll tell you what happened.

We were having a romantic dinner. Good music and damn, Fuckface had a good taste in interior design. That restaurant belonged to him by the way. Food was delicious to the point I say that I would love to trade half of my life supplies of tomatoes with him for the food. Then came that motherfucking voice of him saying things that I was eager to hear but didn't show it. Pride. Don't judge me. If only I knew, I wouldn't let him go on.

"Hey, Lovi. Let's break up."

Bam! You hear that? That's the alarm that I've been aware of but never acknowledged it.

I remain as calm as I could.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! WHY?!"

See? Calm.

I stood up and slammed the table, shocking other customers. Fuck it, I ain't gonna listen to your complains. Imma sit here and wait until this dickhead actually gives me a proper answer instead of looking away.

Yep.

Still not looking at me.

I sigh, folding my arms and crossing my legs. I turned my head, making sure not to look at him.

I wait patiently and then here comes a sigh from him. I could not believe what he said.

"Because I can't handle your temper and attitude anymore. It's as if you never wanted me around and you curse at me. Why can't you be a whole lot nicer to me like Feli?"

I turned back to him. Judging you so hard, Antonio. Is there something wrong with that brain of yours or not?

Of all the people in my life, you're actually the last person I want to hear that from. Yeah, whatever happened to that "You'll always be my favorite, Roma" ?

I bit my cheek in annoyance and heartbreak. As if there's no other choices I sighed deeply and turned to him with the deadliest glare I could give him.

" Treat her right, bastard."

"Huh? What are you saying?" Stupid asshole. Don't act like that. I know who the chick is.

"I said you can date Feli, stupid."

You hear that? That's the sound of a gleeful old sexy man squealing like a fucking 10-years-old girl who got permission from her parents to eat as much cotton candy as she wants.

And then there's the other sound. The metaphorical sound of shattering glass that's oh so close to the sound of my broken heart.

I stood up, grabbed my phone out of my handbag and left the table.  
Antonio looked like he was wondering why I did that. Asshole.

"Look, Feli's at home, okay?"

Yeah, cue that gleeful face once more that doesn't belong to me anymore.

She's in. I tell her. She's happy. She actually had a crush on Antonio for a long time. Mutual feelings. She arrived. I left. They ended up coupling.

Guess what I did? I went to a nearby bar and ordered the strongest in the bar. Heh. It ain't like this one hell of an Italian can't chug all that alcohol down.

Scratch that.

What am I doing? I can live on dammit. And here I am sulking and moping in a bar that literally reeks of sweat and alcohol. Makes me wonder how that fuckface and potato bastard number 2 can actually live through the smell.

Woah. Speak of the devil.

"Kesesese. Why are you in such an un-awesome state? Toni dumped you or something?"

I nodded drunkly.

Well I didn't knew that was just a joke. I was drunk and when I'm drunk I'm honest. Look at their faces, wait you can't. You can only imagine. Haha . It's so priceless.

"Mon dieu,hey Gil, how about we comfort mademoiselle Lovi?" Wow. This dude can actually sound honest when saying a phrase that could have a double meaning.

News flash: So did the Potato Bastard Number 2.

Don't get me starting to the point that the Prussian actually paid for my tab and dragged me out of that junk of a place to their house. Correction: The Potato Bastards' house.

Oh dio mio.

* * *

Flashback time over! Okay. As I was covering my face in disgust and heartbreak, the curses slipped out like Rosso wine. It felt like Heaven since Feli scolded me for cursing in the house so no cursing there and Toni scolded me for cursing like that, saying it wasn't cute. So being the Tsundere girlfriend I was, I followed.

Notice I how I used was there? Yeah. Correction again. Not Toni but Tomato Bastard.

I'm in a dire state, on the Prussian's guest room's bed, crying my heart out, having the Pervert and Flirt of the Bad Touch Trio comforting me, in the Potato Bastard's house, dumped by the best person in my life who I thought vowed to choose me over Feli but got deceived, ranting and not telling Nonno.

Fuck. Nonno. Nonno lived with us but hey, even if he preferred Feli over me, I guess he still cared for my safety.

I ran down the stairs and interrupted the Fuckface's and Damned Albino's drinking time. Got the permission. Great, now to make the call.

That was fast, he picked up.

"Oi Nonno. I ain't gonna come home early or possibly, I ain't gonna go back home, got that? Okay. I'm going to *hic* hang up now" Oh screw it. He heard me hiccup. This is bad. I vowed to not get drunk.

"Lovi? Are you drunk?" Okay, fuck it. Better than lying.

"Si."

"I'll castrate Toni for you, if you want." There goes his grandfather instinct. Should I say yes or no? Wow, for an old geezer, he still has that fatherly instinct, you know, like those where their daughters are heartbroken and they know who to blame, yeah ,those.

"No. It's okay. I'm at the Potato Bastard's house."

"Lovi, language."

"Si, si."

So I hung up before he starts cursing and figuring out ways to tempt me into letting him castrate the Tomato Bastard.

Sure he dumped me but that dickhead now lives for my Mary Sue sister.

What else could go wrong?

I stand corrected.

And right behind me these two who were drinking and had high tolerance for alcohol called me over.

First I rejected and walked upstairs( don't ask how I know my way in the house) but my hand was grabbed by the Prussian who suddenly hugged me and brought to the sofa. I swear if he did anything to me, I'll castra—

WAIT, IS HE NIBBLING MY EAR?! HOLY MOTHERFUCKING WHAT THE HELL.

Oh dio mio. Where is that perv— . Oh hey, he's sleeping. Wait, this isn't the time to be calm!

" Let go of me, you damned albino!" I fidgeted.

"Lovi" Still nibbling my ear, he almost grabbed that stupid curl of mine in which, I slapped his hand.

"What the hell do you want?!" I shouted, like I needed help from a certain pervert who was now sleeping for who knows how long.

"You."

That stopped me from fidgeting. I turned to him. His eyes gleamed sorrowful red.  
"I always wanted but you always loved Toni"

If only this was a fanfiction, he would be categorized as OOC.I stuttered a bit, asking him to let go of me. He did.

I stood in front of him, rubbing my wrist that burned from friction when he tightly grabbed it. It hurts so much tears glisten the ends of my eye. It was fucking latex glove he was wearing. Latex glove against a skin bare hand.

"Dickhead. You don't know what you're saying." I scowled at him.

"I do. That's why I stayed away for so long but since Toni isn't with you anymore, that means I can have you right?" He took a look of my hair and sniffed it.

I know it's gross but that seemed romantic enough.

Wait Lovina. Bad Lovina. BAD LOVINA VARGAS. You were dumped just earlier and you're in a guy's house, in tight clothes bought by your asshole of a sister, with two drunkards in the house, and one of them is sniffing your hair. But it doesn't count as cheating or adultery right? Right.

"One month." I told him that without actually thinking. Oh dio mio, why did I say that?!

" For what? To capture your heart, Prinzessin?"

Aw hell no. I am not going out with this bastard.

"Si. Now start with not tugging my hair and grossingly sniff it, Potato Bastard Number 2".

Well fuck my life I just indirectly accepted his love for me.

* * *

A/N: Okay so this is sort of short and I'm done with my exams. Wrote this during the exams before I slept. It was the best moment of my life. Sleeping in class like nobody's business until my twin and friend decided to go Spartan to wake me up. Anyway, read & review please. And I'll accept any idea since I might get hit by author's block and I'll accept criticism since you made your way into reading this and actually spending your time to criticize my writing.

And by the way,I haven't thought of the ending so the ending depends entirely on the plot. So,make sure you give me your ideas!


	2. Chapter 2

_Dear Tomato Bastard,_

_Remember back when you promised me that you'll never leave my side?_

_I do. Guess what I can bet about your side._

_You don't._

I slumped back into my chair as I mentally typed that into my brain. I was done with all the damned work Feli left me with. All I can say is that when marrying a girl, always remember to check whether the bitch knows a thing called 'organize'. Seriously, that Mary Sue practically drops her make up in her underwear drawer and never again I'll open it. Just so you know, I found some English Cloak that I didn't knew she had for whatever reasons, I don't know and don't want to know.

Oh yeah, if you're wondering about where I'm at right now, I'm at my _own _house not the Potato Bastard brothers' house. Long story short about yesterday ,I drank and drank and Potato Bastard number 2 confessed his undying love for me. Yay? Aw hell naw, bastard. I'm your best friend's ex. It ain't going to work out.

I lifted my head up, facing the ceiling to sort things out. I still haven't gotten over what that Tomato Bastard confessed yesterday. So let's use that method that those weird doctors or whatever they call it gave to that girl from Hunger Games. I read it. Don't judge me and I'll never judge you for not reading it.

_Name's Lovina Chiara Vargas. Age 24. Works as a Secretary. Fuck yeah. Dated that Tomato Bastard once. ONCE. Then he went to my Mary Sue sister. After that, damned albino and fuckface and I met at the bar or something, can't remember. Too drunk. Then fuckface was knocked out by drinking, I don't know, 4 shots ? Weakling. Yeah, Potato Bastard Number 2 went up to me confessing his dying love that I don't know for how long existed to me and I gave him a is practically day 2 out of 30days._

I curled into a ball, hands on either side of my head and mumbling curses at how damned selfish my hangover mode was. Damn hungry bitch mode was damned men hungry mode. That's right. Lovina Chiara Vargas is a slut when she's drunk. And to top it, I immediately replied to him without even giving a single fucking time to myself to think of all the damned possibilities. Woots! Lovina Chiara Vargas is just that badass when it comes to action before thinking. Give me a trophy everybody.

Then there was tapping on my window. Said damned albino smiled at me, indicating to let him in.

Huh. I glared and went over to his side. He smiled, like he was glad that I would let him in. Tough luck, brother. I dragged my curtains from one side to another, covering the window. Bet he was surprised at that. Well I do sort of feel bad for him but hey, let's try to remember the fact that he was on my fucking favorite tomato tree and he just stepped on its branch and nobody gets away from Lovina-Fucking-Badass-Vargas when that happens.

Oh wait. How the fuck did he even get there.

* * *

Mein gott, did that chick just shoved her bunny printed curtains at me? That's so un-awesome. I dropped myself to the ground and perfectly landed on my feet. Thank Gott, Old Fritz was harsh during training. I swear that if he was lenient enough, none of us during his awesome sports training times would succeed.

A smirk found a way to my face when I repeatedly pressed the doorbell. Woah, for a feisty Italian chick, she sure has a cute doorbell. Tomato covered… was this a present from Toni? I don't know. I pressed the doorbell once more. That would make the 25th time I rang it.

Press.

No answer.

Press.

No answer.

Pressing for another 35 times in a minute. No answer. I gritted my teeth. That chick is so going to get it. " OPEN THE DOOR.I WANT TO GET IN" I shouted in the most un-awesome way. Old Fritz, forgive me for resorting to such shouting.

"FUCK NO. STAY OUT CREEPY ASS STALKER." I think she threw down a garment of her clothing in my face from her second story window. I grabbed it away from my face so that I can see. Mein Gott, forgive me. I have grabbed a girl's undergarments. I think I heard her shrieked when she noticed what she just threw at me. Chick knows what's right then and is she wearing only a –

Holy shit. Old Fritz, forgive me. I didn't know but I don't think she realizes that she wore only her undergarments. Please forgive this girl's soul before mine.

* * *

I made sure to lock the door, re-checking the 5 locks I installed just in case that French pervert followed him. I ran back upstairs to lock the windows. There is no way in hell am I going to risk my chastity to a pervert and a flirt. Nope. Nuh uh. Hell to the no.

And then it started to drizzle. I checked the porch. Damned bastard was still standing there, covering his head with his hands. Hmph. If you won't leave, stay there you creepy ass mother fucker. Then it started to get heavy. Still there the last time I checked. And then the rain started becoming dramatic as if turning my life into one of those typical romance dramas that Yoon Soo's place always has. I sighed and rolled my eyes. It won't hurt to at least give him a shelter from the rain, wouldn't it?

I rushed downstairs and quickly opened all the locks. I opened the door and grabbed his arm( notice how I said arm and not hand) and tugged his sleeves to indicate that I'm letting him in. There is no way I'm going to let a person get sick or even tell them that, 'cause, I have social anxiety, okay? It's not like I'm the only one.

Thank God he understood. He nodded and without hesitation, jumped onto my couch, shivering like a beaten puppy that ran in the rain. God, that is so cute. Yep, I just called him cute. But hey, he's shivering and that makes me happy. Sadist mode on.

I threw him a towel I got from the guest room's cupboard. The guestroom used belong to my youngest sister but after she met Peter, brother to a certain eyebrow bastard, she moved out. So it's practically empty now.

"Thanks for the towel!" He threw that damned wet towel back at me. I swear, I could smell his scent on that thing. I growled at him and this guy— This guy! He just fucking smiled back at me. What the fuck?! Did Antonio pour some of his cheerfulness at you or something?! Oh great. I just reminded myself of that cheating Tomato Bastard. I slumped back onto the other sofa 'cause no way in hell am I going to lie myself down on a wet sofa.

And did that Potato Bastard started stripping? Oh dios mio. He just did. Nope. Nada. I turned my head, covering my face with a cushion. Lovina Chiara Vargas. You are a freaking adult and you are not a virgin for body stripping anymore so turn your head back at him this instant. And I did.

Best and worst decision of my life. Damn, had he been working out or was his body like that from the start? From what I can see(more like drool over) is that he has a tout porcelain coloured stomach. And those scars. Oh dios mio, they weren't like those awful looking ones that looked out of place should have never existed but his scars are those kinds where they are just fucking flawless and is like decorating his body to make him look 10 times sexier than Antonio's( yes, I have seen the Tomato Bastard strip _once_) and his skin was so fair. I'm not sure whether I have tints of pink on my cheeks but if I did, they better not be visible to that damned Potato Bastard. I should really put a rule in this house for the guys so that they won't strip 'cause I think if both my ex and this bastard stripped together and started showing off their flawless body, I swear I'll go to the hospital first and if I'm dying, I'll die with perverted thoughts.

Oh shit, did he just noticed me? I guess he did. He's practically smirking and is he going towards me? Oh hell no. Not with that luscious body of yours, Mr. Potato Bastard. I ain't going to be a tomato in a potato sandwich, got it?

And soon, I regretted lying down on my back 'cause I'm pretty sure from what I hinted, he's practically hovering me with his arms on either side of my body. And his cross is hanging from his neck. Okay, I have to confess that I sort of wanted to bite into well-structured collarbone. See how I get when I'm with a hot guy? Yeah. I get all specific. Don't judge me because I know a hell lot of you would actually do that.

* * *

Gilbert's eyes scanned all over her body before his body attempted to pounce on her right away. To Gilbert, her olive skin matched her obviously pinkish red tints on her cheeks. _Cute,_ he thought, plastering a smirk on his face. He leaned down a bit closer to her, and gazed at her. She was blushing heavily and it was obvious she was biting her lower lip. If only he could touch her right now. But he couldn't. He vowed to not touch any girls until it was mutual. Or so that was what he promised with Old Fritz before Old Fritz died.

She tried kicking him in the guts but her legs were in between his, so she was technically restrained from lower body movements. Gilbert brought his face closer to hers, making her blush even redder and headbutt him. Sadly for her and luckily for him, Gilbert dodged it and stole a kiss from her unexpectedly. It took him 5 seconds to process what actually happened before Lovina slapped him. She got up , dropping him on the floor. She stomped back to her room and slammed the door.

_Mein Gott, did I steal her first kiss?_ Gilbert thought to himself, placing a hand on his swollen cheek before he got his balance back. "Um hey?" He mumbled softly as he climbed up the stairs. As usual, there was no answer. Typical. It was the feisty, reclusive and unsocial Italian after all. What else do you expect? He waited silently in front of a door. He didn't know what to expect so he sighed. He slumped his back against the door, gradually ended up squatting in front of it. " So was that your first?"

"Wrong door, idiota."

He was surprised and looked up and then noticed how feminine the door was. _Woah, how did I mistook this door for hers?_

He turned to his right to see a grumpy looking Lovina, crossing her arms as she wore something that could be classified as decent. Sweatpants and a singlet, well, that should be alright, right? Right. And was that a messed up heart looking shape her curl turned into? Gilbert couldn't stop himself from giggling. He practically blurted out on how ridiculous she looked like when she was at home compared to when she was strolling in the city or going on some occasions. Lovina puffed her cheeks and repeatedly punched his shoulders, making the other scream in pain because her fists were stronger than Elizaveta's frying pan, that, Gilbert can confirm on the spot.

After a while, Lovina's hair got tangled due to her being frustrated and shaking her head to indicate strong denial,. She carded her fingers into her hair to sort it out but some of her hair, she couldn't reach at all so she let the albino handle it for her. Probably. Well, from Gilbert's perspective, you could say it was like that. But of course there were some persuasions and denial in help, but alas, the albino had his way.

Almost untangling the ends of her hair, Gilbert lifted the long locks to see her nape. There was a chain, hidden by her hair and collar.

"Nice chain you got there." Gilbert cooed at it. It was probably pure gold seeing how it shined and it was difficult to break.

"Don't touch it!" Lovina slapped Gilbert's hand away from the necklace and turned around, facing the albino with a pained face full of anger. She clenched her hand on to the necklace tightly. Little did Gilbert know, there was a gold ring hanging from the chain. Gilbert tilted his head to his side while staring at her. Then he noticed the pain. Lovina was stepping on his hand. He growled in pain, to which, Lovina got surprised and moved abruptly.

"Ouch. That hurts a hell lot. So, what's with that thing around your neck anyway? It doesn't look awesome or any—"

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT" She tightened her fist around the necklace, pulling it to herself as she steps back, as if she doesn't want the albino to move in closer to touch it. Gilbert was dumbfounded. Surely, that necklace must have hold some significance right? What could be special about the necklace to the point she doesn't want anyone else to hold it, much less, see it as she did hid it from everyone's view.

Oh.

Gilbert walked closer to her. Lovino gritted her teeth but she didn't flinch. She backed away until she hit into a wall. Gilbert pinned her, both hands on either side of the wall. He leaned in closer, hovering over her, covering her flushed face in his shadow. He grabbed the necklace as Lovino flinched when she felt the albino's breath brushing her ear, asking to see it.

A custom-made ring, of gold and carved onto it, a carnation and a vow of devotion on the inside. Such detailed work must've cost a lot. Gilbert pulled it, suffocating the other. He took glances and examined everything about it. There were no scratches so she must have kept it pretty damn well. Gilbert clicked his tongue in annoyance and lunged forward, smashing their lips together. Literally.

Lovina pushed him away, placing her hand over her mouth. Gilbert dropped to the floor and got his stand back instantly. A string of blood started to roll from the corner of her thin lips. Her lips were bleeding. Probably because of Gilbert's sudden kiss. Gilbert snapped out of his trance. His eyes widen in shock. Lovina started walking towards him. Her face was flushed in anger and irritation. She slapped his cheek, where a red glowing imprint of her hand now plastered on that pale white skin of his.

"Son of a bitch! The hell do you think you're doing?!" Lovina was on the verge of kicking him out but stopped as soon as Gilbert's phone started ringing. It was from Ludwig. Even if she's rude and ill-tempered, she at least had enough manners to let the albino answer.

"Yo! How's my awesome bruder doing?" He spoke as if nothing happened. There was only silence. "Hello?" Gilbert asked for the second time. It wasn't like his brother to be silent. Then came a familiar voice.

"Ve~ Gilbert. Ludwig's drunk and he's sputtering weird stuff to me! Help me please? Pretty please? DIOS MIO. GILBERT,LUDDY'S STARTING TO ORDER ANOTHER 30 BOTTLES OF BUDWEISERRRR!"

Lovina cocked her head to her side. What the hell was her sister doing with the Potato Bastard? She had the Tomato Bastard, right? Wait! No! She can't think of Toni right now! Dammit! She already started calling him Toni, IN HER FREAKING MIND. Her guts felt like they were churning uncomfortably and her chest hurts. Gilbert noticed her discomfort. He muttered a bit and screamed "I'M HANGING UP" when Ludwig started to take over the phone , complaining about his brother's Spartan ways of raising him.

"So, you're still in love with him?" Gilbert cooed, ignoring the still painful cheek of his. Lovina lowered her head to her side, glancing over a photo at a table in front of her door. She mumbled a yes then her head shot up. She remembered something.

"As far as I know, weren't you in love with that Hungarian bitch?" She glared at him, but not one of her intense glare, those glares that show curiosity. Gilbert was dumbfounded. Then he wrapped his stomach as he began to chuckle. Lovina growled in disgust. _This bastard better not be mentally ill._

"Mein Gott, it was that obvious?" Bullseye. Lovina grinned a bit. Now she sees where this is going.

"So, that was the reason you confessed?" She smirked. Gilbert nodded. Both parties now understood. Lovina lead him into her room. She sat on her bed while she forbid the albino to sit next to her.

" And now, you want to get revenge because that Hungarian bitch is now dating that Piano freak so you're taking advantage of me who is now single because I was dumped by the Potato Bastard?"

Again, Gilbert nodded. Lovina started to muff up her laughter. Then another thought came to her.

" Then why me?"

"Because you were the second closest person I have next to Toni. Awesome right?"

"What is so awesome about that, bastard?"

"THAT MEANS YOU GET TO HANG OUT WITH THE AWESOME ME WHILE I THINK OF AN AWESOME PLAN!"

There was a loud bang that was produced to Lovina throwing her journal at the albino's head. Gilbert's nose started to bleed due to the impact so he groaned in pain. _Is this chick on her PMS or something?_

Lovina sighed then took a photo frame that was placed next to her bed. She stared at, unconsciously going into trance. It was a photo of her and the Tomato Bastard on a vacation at Sicily. Her lips muttered something inaudible to the albino's ears. Gilbert asked "What were you saying? I didn't hear you."

She placed it back on her table and plopped herself onto her bed on her stomach, burying her face into her pillow. "I was wondering why that bastard chose Feli over me. Dammit! He even swore!" She started trashing in her bed, her legs kicking the air, messing up her well made bed. Unknown to her, Gilbert tensed up as if he knew something that was related to that, but he decided not to tell. He was a reason of that break up though. He plastered another one of his jovial smiles and started using his cheerful voice to cover up his tense.

"So! Are you in this with the awesome me or not?! You might even get Toni back... if you're that awesome" The last few words were purred out, giving a shiver to Lovina's spine.

"Hah! Whatever it takes to get the reason out of that bastard's mouth! I'm in this!"

That afternoon was spent with them chatting away with plans on how to make their significant other who betrayed their love, jealous. And unknown to Lovina, Gilbert was the reason the Spaniard broke up with her.

* * *

A/N: I was supposed to upload this chapter yesterday but the Internet line was so fucking slow and I was desperate to finish my Science project~ Anyways, it was sped up because Margaux was asking for the second chapter~ And I forgot about the disclaimer. Oh well, just so you know, if I owned it, I would have already put all the Asian countries as characters. And please review 'cause, I get this vibration from my phone when I get a new favourite/follow/review~ AND I LOVE THAT FEELING ESPECIALLY WHEN I'M IN SCHOOL~


	3. Chapter 3

" Si~ Big Brother Toni is really nice to me, sorella!"

"Haha, but Feli's even nicer~"

Lovina wanted to rip her guts out. Gilbert on the other hand was laughing it off, making sure he doesn't lose the grip of his hand that was latched on to Lovina's wrist, making sure the Italian doesn't lose it. Lovina wanted to cry right now. Her admired one was with her sister. She oh so wanted to be the right person for the Spaniard, but the Spaniard chose her Mary Sue sister instead of her. She wanted to latched herself to someone's shirt, cling on them and confess what she was feeling. But not now. Now is when they're having a double date.

Lovina glared at the albino, who in turn sent her one of his pleading faces. It wasn't what they both wanted but they wanted to see the reactions of their loved ones when they see them together. Lovina agreed when Gilbert told her that it'll make the Spaniard jealous and when she asked why he would go, it was because Elizaveta invited them and she was going with Roderich. Oh how wrong they were. They were instead met with happy and jovial faces. If only they can punch the guts and rip their faces off. Gilbert clenched his fist as he muttered "Stay strong" to Lovina.

Lovina gritted her teeth and just to make sure she looked happy in front of her sister and the Spaniard, she bit the insides of her cheek and forced a smile but just to makes sure they don't suspect anything wrong, she cursed and blushed and punch the albino whenever he praised her. Antonio latched his arm with Feli's, inviting the others to a nearby restaurant that Elizaveta had earlier booked for them 6. Gilbert looked to his left and right and no sign of the Hungarian and Austrian. He sighed but at least that'll lessen his worries as he saw the Italian almost on the verge of breaking.

" Hey Big Brother Toni, what's that?" Feliciana pointed towards the most perverted painting ever that was hanging on the wall. " Eh? Aren't those two people hugging?" Gilbert and Lovina nearly punched a wall because of their obliviousness but managed to hold it in by gripping each other's hand as hard as possible, to the point you can see finger nail marks when they let go. They sat down at the table, Feli next to Antonio and Lovi next to Gilbert. Soon enough, the Hungarian and Austrian arrived , hand in hand. The Austrian had a deep scarlet blush plastered on his face while the Hungarian squealed that both the Italian sisters were able to go.

Gilbert clicked his tongue every now and then whenever Elizaveta praised the musician. He felt annoyed but even more worried for the Italian that sat next to him. She started to fidget. _"You worried or scared?"_ He whispered to her, receiving a silent "Latter". Then came the meals. It was quiet for the feisty Italian and the albino because they had nothing to talk about. The other 3 (because Roderich had said that he wasn't one to ignore manners) chatted happily. Their attentions were then onto the two people who were so quiet. "What?" They said in unison, growling because they were interrupted while eating.

"It's so rare to see Gil and Lovi so calm! I bet this is the power of amor that Franny's been talking about, si?" Gilbert and Lovina started to sweat and looked at each other. If only they knew what was actually going on between them. Lovina felt like choking on her spit. Gilbert instead stomped her foot as soon as she wanted to leave. So she sat down, cursing at the albino like usual and Gilbert in turn, became the arrogant albino everyone knew. Then they started fighting. Thankfully, it was one of Francis' restaurants and they were regulars. The waiters and waitresses were so used to them, they practically ignored and didn't bother to kick them out like the first time.

"You two are so sweet together!" Elizaveta cooed, breaking off the fight between the albino and the Italian. "Excuse me?" Lovina mumbled in shock. _No way in hell do we look sweet together! We came here to piss you guys off! _She thought to herself and glancing at the albino, surely he must've thought the same. They let go of each other's hair and mouth and sat down properly, continuing to eat as if nothing happened. Gilbert growled in annoyance when he saw that Elizaveta was patting her handkerchief all over Roderich's lips. He wanted to murder the Austrian right now but well, he can't.

Lovina on the other hand, wanted so bad to lacerate herself. She was so sick of her sister and the Spaniard being lovey dovey with each other, she wanted to puke. She only started to pay attention when she heard Antonio praising Feliciana.

"Ah~ Mi Feli is really the best! I can never find someone like her~" He cuddled the other Italian. "I'm really grateful I met someone like her" The words pierced her heart like daggers at her back. _But that's what he said about me.. _, she thought to herself, recalling the times when Antonio would boast about her in front of his friends. She was on the verge of crying but bit the insides of her cheeks, almost to the point it's bleeding and it'll flood her mouth with the red fluid. She wanted to leave but as an Italian, she wouldn't want to ruin a date, right? She's from the country of lovers, second next to France, damn it! Gilbert saw her shuddering in disgust and frustration. He sighed and took her hand. With that, he stood and held their hands up high, making the other shocked as to why he was doing this.

"May I have your attention please?"

Lovina almost tripped as she stood next to the Prussian. She turned her head right back at him, giving him the deadliest glare she could but instead ,she met with the eyes of a sweating and nervous albino. All she could figure out right now is that the albino is about to do something reckless. And in that instant, Gilbert cupped her face, she gave a "what the fuck" face, and right then, he kissed her in front of everyone. Her eyes widened and when she looked at the albino in front of her, even he had the same expression but the show must go on.

That being done, he began his "speech" with a firm starter.

"My name's Gilbert Beilschmidt and tonight, and this is the girl I love, Lovina Chiara Vargas." He pursed his lips, then brought the other into a hug, making sure they looked like they kissed, he brought his lips close enough to touch hers but covered their faces by grabbing a lock of her long hair to cover their lips. That being done, he whispered to her "Dude, think of something fast" and all Lovina could think of was " I don't do ad-lib,jerk!".

When they stopped "kissing" they took glances around them and everyone started clapping for them, some said Gilbert was a brave fellow for doing that in public while others said that Lovina should be grateful she was hooked up with someone like Gilbert. Their gaze fell onto each other as they sat. Staring into each other's eyes for a while, Lovina began to chuckle lightly, surprising the albino and the rest of the people at their table. "What the hell are you laughing for?" Gilbert asked with a tone that made him sound like he knew that something was wrong with his appearance that made the Italian laugh. "Your face is fucking pink! Ha! It's so pink I can't believe you were as pale as white!" She pointed to him while her other hand clasped her mouth to avoid further laughter. Gilbert flushed even redder and a scowled formed on his thin lips before ad-libbing something to cover his embarrassment.

Soon after exchanges of ad-libs and truthful comments, they stopped as soon as Roderich "coughed", telling them to stop and not bother other patrons, to which, they didn't seem to mind at all. But hey, who would want to listen to the Austrian continuously playing his piano to show his anger? Not these two if Heaven's right. They pursed their lips and tried their best to hold in their laughs, their hands trembled as soon as they grabbed their own spoon to finish their cottage pie as brunch.

All of a sudden, Lovina dropped her spoon. Antonio smiled as cheerful as he is, simply asking "What's wrong, Lovi?" Lovina cursed at the smudge that was left on her cotton mid thigh length dress. "Nothing's wrong, bastard. Just that I felt like vomiting."

Being the conversation starter she is, Elizaveta clasped her hands to her mouth, gasping. "Did Gilbert make you pregnant?!"

"Hell no! We're not even there yet!"

"Yet! That means he DID have some advances on you!"

"Fuck you!"

"Lovi, that's not nice, you know."

"Fuck you too!"

"Oi, how dare you cheat on the awesome me!"

Lovina face-palmed. This was not how she wanted to converse with them on a triple date. She always wanted to have a girl talk with Elizaveta and her sister( even if she stole her ex boyfriend). She pouted and grabbed a tissue to remove the stain. She rubbed harder as the stain refused to be removed. "Dammit! Why can't you just go away?!" Gilbert leaned in closer, grabbed the tissue and poured some water on her dress then patted the spot with the tissue. "See? If you do it like this, the tissue will absorb it and the stain will go away at least to make it unnoticeable." Lovina looked at him in disbelief. "Since when were you smart?"

"I feel insulted at the same time praised."

"Well, good for you, fucker."

And then the bickering goes on and on.

As the time passed, they had already finished their brunch as men, they had to go pay for the food after being forced by Elizaveta. In the mean time, Elizaveta snuck over to both the Italians. She leaned it towards Feli, pestering about her and Antonio's relationship at how far they went, making Lovina feel uncomfortable. The Hungarian then turned to Lovina, which shocked her because she did not want to talk in the least bit, worried that some of her jealousy might slip in while she talked.

"So, how's Gilbert doing with you?" Elizaveta cooed as she smiled. _Oh if only you knew what we're actually planning. You poor soul._ Lovina thought to herself as she noticed the men had done paying, crying over their empty wallets. Lovina scooted over to Gilbert. She leaned in closer to his ear and whispered "Damn you, bastard! I was fucking scared she'd ask me something weird!" Gilbert in turn looked away, averting his gaze from landing into the feisty Italian's tear-glistened eyes. Elizaveta noticed and as soon as she saw Gilbert gazing away, she mistook it as Gilbert was too embarrassed to look at his "girlfriend".

She hummed cheerfully as she skipped out of the restaurant, ignoring the looks of other patrons as she slammed the door wide open. She latched her arm with Roderich's while Feliciana latched hers with Lovina herself. " Geh, of all people, shouldn't you be doing this to the Tomato Bastard?" She scowled as Feliciana dragged her into a boutique that Elizaveta went in earlier. "Well, Big Brother Toni is over there with Luddy's big brother!" She pointed to their back. Those two were way far behind.

If Lovina were to say jealous of their relationship, she was bugged by the question as to why her sister still called the Spaniard "Big Brother Toni" and Ludwig in an affectionate way. Wouldn't that make the Tomato Bastard jealous? The older Italian knew better than to make the Spaniard jealous or else someone might end up losing an arm. She learnt that the easy way though. In any case, she shoved the question to the back of her mind and went into the boutique of cute looking attires.

* * *

"Gil, I don't think either one of us could go on any longer." Antonio looked at his friend with a serious gaze and a frown. Gilbert gulped but didn't show his fear of a serious Antonio. Everyone knew better than to joke around with the Spaniard when he's this serious. As they saw the girls entering the boutique, dragging Roderich along, Gilbert slumped himself down on a bench under a tree, motioning for the other to do the same as their legs gave out.

"She's not a toy you can easily dispose of, you know."

"Says the person who listened to my favour." Gilbert responded as soon as possible.

Antonio oh so wanted to punch him in the face right here and right now. He palmed his face and elbows on his knees, he growled. "I really hate you right now"

"Jealous, I see?" Gilbert cooed but made sure it wasn't as cheerful to piss the other off.

"What made me agree to this again?" Antonio thought to himself as he reminded himself of that night.

_A knock was heard following by another one. The Spaniard walked downstairs at a my pace, constantly saying "I'll be there in a minute!". As he opened the door, the albino slumped inside his house, drenched in cold rain. Antonio dragged him over to the dinner table's chair and placed him there because he knew that if Lovina found out that the sofa she loved lying on was wet and damp, she would rant on and on about the discomfort. He threw a towel over the Prussian's head. He sat down on a chair and tilted his head to his side as he gave a cup of warm milk to the other in case the other wanted warmth._

_"Can I have Lovina?"_

_Antonio jerked as he heard the question from his friend. " Did I hear that right?" Sure, he vowed to give his friends anything they wanted if something bad happened to them. And he knew that Gilbert always had his eyes on her even if she belonged to Antonio._

"Yeah, you did."

_"Mi amigo, why?" He wanted to slap his friend's face so bad but he couldn't. He never enjoyed slapping people when they're already as worse as they are before asking for something._

_"Because Liz chose him and I went to get back at her."_

_Antonio shook his head at the statement. Why would anyone want to give their lovers up for someone who lost their own? But being the kind person he is, he smiled lightly._

_"I guess you can? But make sure to give her back as soon as it fails or succeeds. I absolutely do not want you to touch her in any way possible, got that?" He shot glares at him as he emphasize at the last sentence but the albino simply nodded without feeling intimidated._

"I knew I said that but still…I don't like it at how you simp—" His sentence was left unfinished as Elizaveta dragged Lovina and Feliciana out in new outfits. "Aren't they just the cutest!" She smiled and chuckled as she shove Lovina in front of Gilbert. Even if Gilbert saw her second best to Elizaveta and almost hardly saw her seriously, he flushed and stuttered his words.

Lovina wore a red beret and had her hair down and her bangs clipped with a flower pin. She wore a red thigh length overcoat and a skirt underneath. She wore brown knee high boots that were dark brown in colour and frills that rimmed the edges and it was folded. Her shoes weren't zips so they had black shoe laces. She had her sling bag hanging over her shoulder to keep her previous outfit in it. She crossed her arms and pouted, thinking that the Prussian would insult at what she was wearing.

"That's right! Insult me all you want!" She screamed as her face blushed but instead, she received dripping sounds from the Prussian. Looking at him, she noticed he had started bleeding. She squeaked as she started to panic at the response. She grabbed a tissue from her bag and started to pat around the blood, hoping that it won't get any more serious. Elizaveta giggled and scooted over a similarly dressed Feliciana( only that she wore beige) to Antonio.

* * *

The day ended when Roderich had a meeting to attend to and Antonio had to go back to Madrid for family affairs, bringing along Feliciana. Lovina walked side by side with Gilbert, staring at the sky.

"I guess Toni was right after all."

Lovina looked over to him as she folded her arms behind her back, casually walking until she felt a pair of familiar lips smacking onto hers. She gasped in shock and back away.

"The hell was that for?!"

"To prove that Toni was right."

"On what kind of bullshit?!"

"The bullshit that he said that it's easy to fall in love with you. Don't give me that look, bitch!"

Gilbert covered his face to cover his embarrassment. Lovina in turn blushed furiously at the statement. The whole walk back became too awkward for them so they were happy that they met Ludwig on the way, even if Lovina started to mumble insults at him but Ludwig found it the usual.

* * *

As they walked back to Lovina and Feliciana's house, Antonio looked at down at his feet as they walked. Feliciana did the same. It was quiet for both of them until the Italian decided to say something.

"I hate you, you know that?"

"I know. "

"You broke Sorella's heart and simply gave it away."

"I know."

"You jerk. Don't give me that I know bullshit! If you did, why the hell did you give her to Luddy's brother!"

"I SAID I'M SORRY REMEMBER?! IT'S NOT LIKE I'M HAPPY ABOUT IT AS WELL! EVEN I WANT HER TO MYSELF!"

Antonio sobbed as he remembered the painful words he said to Lovina on the day they part ways. Feliciana didn't feel even an ounce of sympathy for the other. She only felt anger until she found Ludwig on her porch, leaving with Gilbert after possibly getting kicked out by Lovina. At that moment, she leaped and parted her way with Antonio who seemed to subside his sobbing. "Luddy! I miss you so bad!" She nuzzled at his cheek, earning a groan of disgust from the Prussian and a red German. She glared at Gilbert and a frown replaced her smile.

"I hate you too, you know."

"Well, good to know someone has a place for me in their heart even if it's hate."

"I hate you for doing that to Sorella and Big Brother Toni but I hate Big Brother Toni more because he gave in to your stupid request!"

"Go easy on him, Feli." Ludwig said in a calm voice so that he didn't piss them both. Feliciana let go of her hug and went to her doorway, waving a goodbye and a dagger glares at the German brothers. She enter the house and locked it. She went into the living room and found Lovina in the same attire from the boutique, having her face buried in a cushion. "Sorella, what are you doing?" She asked with glee in her voice.

"When I meet that bastard, I swear I'll kick him in his dick!" She muttered to herself. "What did he do sorella?" Feli was even more curious so she scooted over to the couch, having found out that her sister was blushing terribly red.

"Bastard kissed me and everything was your average cotton candy sweet typical Asian drama scene" Her voice trailed off as she realized she was telling this to her sister. Without saying a greeting to her sister, she ran upstairs and into her room. Feli stood in the living room with a malicious aura of wanting to kill the Prussia for advancing on her sister.

* * *

**A/N: I have no idea what I just wrote but this was supposed to be uploaded yesterday. Sorry for the wait and I remembered someone sent me a review saying that she/he is starting ship PruMana/Prumano. Well good for you and reviews would make me so happy because y'all know how I love the feeling of my phone vibrating in school and shoving it in the face of my friend's.**


	4. Chapter 4

Flashes of white were blinding her eyes as she tried to not close her eyes during the photo shoot. A pair of green eyes focused the lens of his camera as he tried to find a good looking spot for his next shot. The Italian shifted a bit, giving more of her good sides to the Brit as she posed to show off her current clothes' beauty and style. It didn't really need that much of attention since she wore a white off shoulder blouse, ruffled at the collar's and sleeves' ends. Over it was a soft sky blue vest that had the tips going down to her thigh. In addition to that, she wore soft pastel brown shorts that only covered a bit of her thighs and similarly brown beret, only that it didn't have the shade and was more to the artists' sort of beret. Dark brown tights were pulled up to her mid thigh, leaving some of her cream coloured thighs for the eye. Pastel beige boots complimented her style as they were shoe laced and not zipped, the top being folded down, bringing down the ruffles that they were adorned with.

"Okay, dear. I think it's about time that you should leave. Don't want any blood in my studio like last time." Arthur brushed her off as she went off stage and into the changing room. She came out wearing a red chesterfield and a scarf, black jeans and ankle high brown boots. "For your reason or my reason?" She walked up to the Brit's shoulder, slapping it as she cooed, indicating that he might as well take care of what he was wearing as well.

"You may be the photographer but if you're not careful, any of those bastards might come in any second and fight over you more than me." Lovina stated as she took a photo of Arthur with her phone, making sure to send it to her other bosses so that she had time off. "Oh you, as much as I know, I know well enough that you don't need the money because of your inheritance. Now delete that photo, you little brat!" He told her as he tried reaching for it but sadly, her boots made her taller than her original height. Arthur cursed as he couldn't reach it. Then he thought of an idea that two certain people, an American and a French in particular, had told him a few days ago, since he really needed an idea for the Italian to stop harassing him.

"So, how are you and the rogue German?" He hit the mark, was what he thought as he saw Lovina flushed and she was beginning to become speechless, her words ended up as mumbles and stutters. "Ohonhonhon, I see that you two are having a good time. How about you come to Frere's for a while, oui?" Without any hesitance, Lovina ran to him, sticking out her tongue to Arthur as she did so. Arthur in turn shot her the finger.

After leaving the studio's entrance way and into Francis' car, the French pushed the key into the ignition and turned it. As soon as they were ready, Francis drove off before the Italian decided he was taking too much of her precious time so she drove instead. As much as he loved and trusted the Italian, there was no way in Hell nor Heaven will he be dying early. "Why won't you let me drive?! You're so fucking slow like a motherfucking turtle, fuck face!"

Francis poked her cheek as he tried to ignore the nicknames she gave him and focused on the road. "Because as much as I love you as a friend, I love my life more." He never expected the Italian to understand his statement and thankfully, she didn't. When they reached a stop light, Francis did a left turn and a straight one right after that. A restaurant came into view. Specifically, it was one of Francis' restaurant. Lovina sighed and slumped into her seat. Then she began to tap her fingers on the dashboard, much to the French's annoyance.

Francis parked at a reserved spot for himself. He pulled the key from the ignition and opened his door, knowing that the Italian wouldn't want to look like those dependent people, those that expected someone to open their door for themselves. Lovina walked out of the car, carefully closing the door of the car since it was very precious to Francis and she did not want to go through another round of lecture from the Frenchman. When she headed for the back door, Francis stopped her and tapped on his watch, making her look at her watch. When she did, it showed her lunch hour. She didn't understand so she gave him a scowl. Francis shook his head and pointed towards the gateway. Then she saw a familiar looking car and two familiar looking people in it.

"And that's why, I'm not going to let you work today. Gil paid me to do that actually, even though I would have let you off voluntarily."

"No! I don't want to! Not with that bastard!"

She tried kicking him but the French caught her by her waist, wrapping his arms around her stomach from her back. She wanted to hide in embarrassment as she remembered what happened the other day. She grabbed the door's frame and tried to push herself in but the pressure the French that had put on her made it impossible. "Oh non you don't! As a French, I will have the two of you lovebirds together at all times!" He pulled her away from the door, releasing her grip and held her up. Familiar sounding pair of footsteps were running up to them. "Francis, that's no way to treat a chica!" His lisp and accent was so thick, Lovina wanted him to purr out her name but shrugged the thought off as she remembered about their break up. She pouted and glared at Francis. "Oi bastard, you should listen to him! Now let me go you dick!" As much as Francis wanted to, he had a plan. But that'll sacrifice his limbs for the matter.

"Nope. Still not going to, mon frère." He tightened his grip around her waist, making the Italian cursing out profanities at him. Then cue the albino who had no one noticed about his presence until Antonio scoffed. "Hey, let mein girl go, Franny. You know she doesn't like that." Gilbert grabbed Francis' wrist, tightening his grasp which might as well be able to break the French's wrist. Lovina saw this as a giveaway. She then hid behind Gilbert , cowering behind him as Antonio tried to calm the albino.

After 3 rounds of failure and multiple risks of medical bills, the albino gave up, knowing that he won't be able to beat up his friends anyway. "Come on, prinzessin. The awesome me has somewhere to bring you!" He gave her a cheerful smile, knowing that his Italian "lover" had no idea about what was actually going on behind her back.

As soon as they were out of ear shot, Francis' smile faltered and turned to Antonio. "I take it you didn't know that she was a freelancer." He expected a shocked reply, seeing that he was talking to someone oblivious but he only heard "Yeah.. but she never specifically said it." Sighing, Francis shook his head and ushered him in and to a spot where they could have lunch together since it was break for everyone and the restaurant is closed at afternoon.

* * *

"Tell me again why we're here.." Lovina glanced from left to right. They were at the beach and it took them 4 hours to reach there all because of Gilbert having the need to buy some premium German beer at some stores, saying that he's running out of stock at home. The albino then threw his fist up into the air as he nonchalantly shouted at her " Because this is Day 12 out of a month! The awesome me needs to make some advances, don't cha' think so?" He then turned to the Italian whose face had tints of pink and her lips were quivered in embarrassment. She hit his head with her fist. "Bastard! The hell are you saying?!" And soon enough, all eyes were at the "couple".

As far as the trial for a month had went, ever since the day Gilbert had told her that he actually had started falling for her, she was too embarrassed to talk to him so Feliciana often teased her about it. This was actually the first time since days that they talked to each other, had they counted the times they accidentally met at the supermarket.

Lovina sighed and rest her elbows on the railings, her back slouched as she crossed her right leg with her left ankle. A few other people were there. Who is to say that there should be lots of people since it's a beach? It was a weekday and she liked it when the place isn't crowded. She gazed into the ocean as the sunset orange colour reflected off the water and the wind was cool and calm, lifting her hair along with it but not to the point it'll frizz and tangle itself. She wanted to take a photo of the deep crimson horizon. She was drawn in, the colour mesmerized her and like the water, her auburn eyes easily reflected the deep shade of crimson.

Then she heard a click. Puzzled, she was then reminded that she wasn't alone here. The albino gave her a toothy grin and when she noticed the camera in his hand, she badly wanted the photo taken to be deleted. "Bastard! Delete it! Delete it before I castrate your—" Her lips were concealed with another pair. Gilbert got too tired of her rambling so he did it, because Toni told him once that that was one of the ways and he was actually glad for once that Toni gave him a useful advice. He carefully kept his camera into his sling bag that he brought along with him as he pulled them both apart. Lovino grunted and the tints of pink went back to her cheeks. _Dammit, am I sick or something? _Lovina thought as she was wondering why her face felt hot a lot of times recently.

"So prinzessin, a dinner with the awesome me?" He held out a hand to her but she didn't take it. She merely passed by him and flipped her hair lightly, which he sulked about. "Not with those of course." She turned to him with a smirk, then turned back, walking towards the car as she adjusted her scarf and took off her chesterfield, making her feel thankful that Francis had gave her one of his precious sundresses as she was his childhood friend and partner. Gilbert was shocked at her statement then tugged his collar. Figures, he accidentally went out wearing a jersey, track slacks, sports shoes, white teacher underneath and a whistle. Well, who's to blame him since that thing was so goddamn comfortable?

"Verdammt, next time tell me before I embarrass myself" He let out a grunted sigh as he walked into the car and turned on the ignition, trying to ignore the chuckle from the Italian. The streets were packed with workers going home from work. Lovina had her head against the dashboard, muttering endless complaints about people while Gilbert sat there tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. When he realized how bored they were and how long the traffic jam is, he turned on the radio. Flipping through the channels because Lovina thought the songs sounded like shit to her, in which Gilbert agrees with her since they really did sounded like shit to him as well. When there really was nothing to listen to, the news were up so might as well listen to some reality related shit while waiting. He slumped back into his seat as his finger tapping matched with Lovina's dashboard head banging. Then finally good songs came in.

Gilbert absentmindedly hummed to the tune, which annoyed the Italian. She changed the channel to a different one, this time, playing the songs she loved.

"I was listening to that!"

Without caring and only irritation in mind, she turned the volume up.

"—My heart and hope to di—"

Gilbert pressed on the previous button, which brought them back to the previous song.

"—I think I'm gonna marry –"

"Not a chance." Lovina said as she turned back to her channel. Then Gilbert turned to his. Then Lovina's again then it was Gilbert's. The whole thing repeated until the car finally moved at least one car length forward.

"Gott, this is taking a long time." Gilbert finally gave up and lightly placed his head on the steering wheel as he listened to Lovina's song. Then when the song ended, Lovina sighed in boredom as she slumped back into her seat. She then took her turn to search the channels for something good to listen to.

"And all it counts, is here and now" the song started as Gilbert whispered along the lyrics.

"My universe will never be the same, I'm glad you came—" Lovina continued as they both continued with the rest of the lyrics.

"You cast a spell on me, a spell on me. You hit me like a star fell on me, fell on and I decided you look well on me, well on me" Lovina took her turn as the same verse came for the second time, waiting for the albino to continue where she left off.

"So let's go somewhere no one could see, you and me, turn the lights out now." Gilbert's voice trailed as the traffic slowly became smoother by the second.

"Now, I'll take you by the hand, hand you another drink, drink it if you can—" Lovina sang as she slowly closed her eyes due to being tired.

Gilbert pouted because whenever the lyrics came to a part where drinking came in, it should be his but he shoved it to the back off his head, continuing the song with Lovina until it ended.

"Can you spend a little time? Time is slipping away, away from us so stay with me so I can make you glad you came" Knowing how awkward and perfectly matched the song is with their current status, he tried not to look at her as she did the same with him.

The traffic finally flowed like normal as the cars that once filled the other routes reached their own homes. The song hasn't ended so both of them whispered. " The sun goes down, the stars come out… and all it counts, is here and now.. my universe, will never be the same—" Lovina trailed the song as she noticed that Gilbert left her alone to sing halfway.

"Hey prinzessin, I'm glad you came." The albino looked into the traffic, not realizing that the Italian faintly smiled before replacing it with one of her famous scowls. Thankfully, Gilbert brought his change of clothes. They stopped at Gilbert's house that he shared with Ludwig while his other three brothers were somewhere else with his father, or so that was how Gilbert explained it to her.

Lovina waited on the porch as she adored the roses that were planted outside his house. As she walked along, the flowers slowly changed into carnations and irises. If her memories were correct…

_Lovina sat on the couch, hugging her huge teddy bear that Antonio had given to her on her birthday as a child, which she treasured dearly. She felt bored so she lied down her upper body, easing the pain by lifting up a bit of her legs. Then she heard footsteps on the staircase, a familiar pattern and sounds that she was familiar with._

_Antonio walked to her, forgetting that he had no shirt on and only pants to keep him dress, unless the cross that was hanging around his neck could be counted as an article of clothing. Lovina threw her teddy bear at him in embarrassment. " B-Bastard! The fuck are you doing?! Don't you have anything to wear, huh?!" Antonio tackled her, taking advantage of the fact that she was lying down on the couch. He wrapped her in his arms as he laid himself on the couch. She was trapped in between his strong arms, arms which she knew that are strong and are willing to help her in any situation._

_She turned around to face him but instead was facing his bare chest. As she wanted to cuss at him, she scanned his body and noticed something that she has never seen before."Hey bastard, the fuck is that thing on your waist?" Bluntly telling her, Antonio cheerfully told her that it was a tattoo of his hometown's flower. A carnation. She thought it was pretty but being the properly raised child she is, she lectured him about getting a tattoo and the fact that she should have been told._

She stopped daydreaming as she heard Gilbert closing the door. As much as she didn't want to admit, she had to acknowledge that the albino had a good sense of fashion. A fedora hat that had brims only wide enough to be called an accessory for hair, a thin red scarf that was hanging around his neck, a plain white t-shirt underneath his open vest and skintight black jeans. The vest was sleeveless, revealing the short sleeves of his white t-shirt and the black wristbands on his wrists. The only thing that didn't match were his shoes, which he thankfully, decided to change for a pair of Converse.

Then again, she looked back at her own. Her sundress were probably mismatched with his so she took out an article of clothing and shoes from her bag, thankful that Francis recommended her to wear it when on a da— No, she didn't want to call it a date, nor acknowledge it_. It's just a dinner for two, nothing big._

After changing in his house that made her uncomfortable as she came out, reeked of alcohol that was hidden somewhere. Gilbert wolf whistled at her, receiving a punch to his guts in return. The ignition was then turned on, they left and suddenly realized, they had no plans on where to go.

"So, how about the restaurant Franny's cousin owns?"

"That Canadian restaurant? No. I do not want to smell like maple syrup and attract my sister's nose so that she can fucking lick my face when I'm asleep."

"Gross. Your schwester does that?"

"No shit, Sherlock. Now drive, they're honking."

The honking of the cars behind them deafened her ears. She scowled and shot them the finger, which Gilbert praised her for that since they were in a public place where everyone could sue her for her immoral acts. Again, they were stuck in a traffic jam. "This is the second time this fucking happened."

Gilbert whistled out her voice and swears then noticed something he hasn't asked anyone yet. "Hey, I know this is sudden but, I see you a lot at that eyebrow's place, Franny's place and Mattie's older brother's place. What do you actually do?"

Lovina grunted as she lifted her head from the dashboard. "I should be the one asking you, since you wore the fucking ugly jersey".

"I asked first."

"I asked second. Now tell me."

D_ammit, why do women always win the arguments?!_ He thought to himself. "I'm the PE teacher at the same school Toni works at. Now your turn."

"Side jobs are dressing line model for the damned eyebrows, Italian chef for the fuck face and main job is the Burger Bastard's Secretary."

Gilbert gaped at her statement. _Three jobs, every day?! _He thought with a bewildered face that made Lovina say the same thing in his mind. Though, she was more like answering it. "Because I want to get Nonno's medical treatment paid by the end of his days at the damned hospital and that I really need to have some new stuff for my wardrobe. And yes, being the secretary was more than enough but I want to get out of the house real bad." She flipped her hair, solemnly staring into the streets as blinking red and yellow lights were flashing. Inferiority complex was the reason after all. Even if her Nonno favoured Feliciana more than her, she still loved him just as much, only that it wasn't direct and only through her achievements, did she proved her love for him.

"Changing the topic because the awesome me is getting real tired of this shitty jam, how about we eat at the diner's? Since we don't even look formal enough for a restaurant."

"Then why invite me for a dinner?"

"Because you never pass up an invitation to a dinner, or so that's what Franny said"

Lovina grunted again. This has been by far the best record of grunts she had ever had in a day. She considered the thought of going to a diner and not a restaurant. As much as she wants to go eat something classy at a restaurant, she wouldn't want to make herself look bad so she agreed for the diner's.

"On one condition."

"What's that, prinzessin?"

"You pay all the things I eat."

"Che! Ja, ja…" Gilbert said as the thought of his wallet being emptied out was flooding his brain. He turned back to the streets again, swearing as the traffic still hasn't moved. Seriously, where's the traffic police when you need them? He slumped into his seat and turned to Lovina who fell asleep while waiting for minutes. He was drawn to her eyes when he first met her via Antonio but the Spaniard got her first. He started to think back about what he said to the Spaniard the other day, promising that he'll give her back to him as soon as he's done with getting pass by his heartbreak. He's starting to reconsider the fact that he may have actually not wanted to give her back after all. He placed his hand on the Italian's cheek, rubbing smooth circles on her cold skin. He wanted to savour all these moments he had with her right now, seeing that he had to leave her once he's done. A thin white line outlined her face and petite lips. Sleeping beside him was the foul mouthed she devil that was vulnerable in his view, and yet he couldn't touch her due to that promise. He didn't care anymore. He can no longer hold it in.

Muttering a soft apology that said "Sorry Toni ", he cupped her cheeks and pecked on her lips, thankful that she probably wasn't awake. He turned back to his windshield, only to realize that the traffic had moved but not as much. He got bored by the second, so he took out his camera and flipped through the photos. Then he stopped at one and stared at it for a while. The photo he took of Lovina earlier struck him with awe and beauty. He may be good at photography but this was one of his best shots.

"You look like a creeper, bastard" Lovina said, followed by a yawn and the sounds of muscles cracking. "How can you have enough sleep in minutes and in this noisy place?!" Gilbert shouted at her, hoping that she would forget about asking what he was actually doing and to stall time so that he could keep it.

"Because I'm just that fucking good at it. Now show me what's in the camera"

He was surprised when he felt her hand on his shoulder, so he lost his grasp on the camera and soon enough, the camera landed on her lap. Humming happily for the Italian and sighing in defeat and embarrassment for the Prussian, Lovina turned it on and scrolled through the photos. _Damn they're pretty. Why the fuck isn't he a photographer? _She thought to herself as she was mesmerized by how the background of each photo was dark and yet, he managed to find a good spot of each thing. Many times, she had wanted to learn how to improve her photographing skills but never found the time, so she brushed it off whenever she found that she really could not take it as a hobby.

"You done yet?" Gilbert stuttered a bit at the first word but tried to keep calm until he heard the Italian being silent, which was unusual for him since she was constantly shouting, save for the times when she was calm and everything else. _Shit, she saw it. _

"Damn, the ragazza in here is pretty. Why won't you date her instead of me?" She nonchalantly and candidly ask, not realizing that she was talking about herself. As much as Gilbert wanted to tell her, he could not help but think _Gott, she's stupidly cute. _She pouted as waited for an answer. "She's you, prinzessin~" He cooed as he was amused with her reaction. Her curl bounced and shaped itself into an uneven shape.

"The fuck do you think you're saying?! You can't lie to me!" She screamed at him in frustration. She threw the camera back to him, thankful that the traffic has not moved or else they would have caused an accident. And the last time she was in an accident, it was Antonio's fault for sleeping while driving, telling her it'll be fine. Gilbert dodged her punch and saved the camera before it crashed on the dashboard. He hissed at her. "Geez! Do you know how much of my fucking pay did I save to get this?" He stuck his tongue out and his eyes went back to the camera's screen, "—and just so you know, it was the lighting that made you look pretty, you bitch" She was dumbfounded. How long has it been since someone got the guts to call her 'bitch'? Oh yeah, since she beat up a group of bullies at her elementary school. Completely different story.

She grinned and crossed her arms. "I take it that you're saying the damn truth." Gilbert rolled his eyes as he was thankful nothing happened to him because the last time the Italian got embarrassed, someone had to go to the hospital because of a broken rib that happened because of her punch. He leaned towards the steering wheel and crossed his arms, placing them on top of the steering wheel as he slouched against it. It was practically killing him on the inside. He was already hungry and who knows how long can he stand without at least a can of beer.

He gave up and groaned. And thankfully for the other users of the road, the light changed to green and as soon as it did, Gilbert sped up in frustration while the Italian wanted to hurl at the speed. "Fucccckkk go slower, stupid!" She groaned as she felt her stomach churn and her throat tasted like sour milk. Sadly for her, all the albino could think of was his beloved beer. Their dinner at the diner's ended up with the albino's wallet emptied because the Italian ended up puking in the toilet and ate too much and even after a full course, she couldn't have enough of everything.

* * *

A/N: Dios, I got sick and my father wouldn't let me on the computer often so this was uploaded pretty late. Honestly, I hate this chapter so it's fine if you hate it. I wrote it only to show development of some kind and to let you know that I'm not discontinuing any case, I might not update this every week or even as often since I have to settle some problems.

Any way, I'll just tell you that I got only 3B's and the rest are A's for my exam results. That's all and read,review,send me the love and share/spread the love~


	5. Chapter 5

His head was throbbing painfully bad. His throat felt dry and weird and he felt awful. He wanted to call out for his brother for a glass of water but stopped as soon as he noticed that the ceiling and the walls of the room were different than his own but seemed familiar but not too familiar. He guessed this was probably Antonio's room, since the Spaniard sometimes invited the bad company over for a sleepover of the sort. He shifted on the bed, pulling the blanket to cover himself from the burning sunlight that penetrated through the curtains. Then he heard a yelp of pain and when he turned in shock and surprise, he saw a familiar looking curl.

"Bastard! The hell do you think you're doing?!" She rubbed the back of her head as she got up from the floor. Gilbert stared at her, wondering why she was in the same room as he was and when he pulled the blanket away from himself, he wasn't wearing any shirt and only his pants but even his pants were unzipped, revealing the hem of his black and white boxers. Then he turned to the Italian, realizing that she was only in her underwear and a top tank. _Gott, what did I do?!_

"Buenos dias —Oh, Gil! You've woken up. " The familiar voice said as he entered the room with a cup of water. As much as Gilbert wanted to ask them what happened, he felt himself being sick and felt like puking. He sniffed himself and figured that he reeked of alcohol. Now he really was worried. _Dear Gott, forgive this poor soul of mine. I seriously have no idea what happened._

Antonio noticed his discomfort and sat at the foot of the bed, next to the standing sitting Italian. "Well, Gil, you were drunk, mi amigo. So Lovi here brought you here!" He said as he opened his arms wide, as if to emphasize the fact that Lovina was helpful enough to bring him over. Hearing that, he palmed his forehead. He wanted aspirin as he felt a migraine coming. He grunted as he slopped onto the bed lazily until he forgot the fact that Lovina's attire was simply indecent. He shot up from bed and grabbed her shoulders.

"Did I do anything before coming here?!" Hi eyes gleamed in worry, Lovina noted that. She smirked as she thought of something to tease him about. She lowered her head and looked sideways, making the Prussian even more worried. She rubbed her arm and started saying "Well, you did –"

"Gott, I'm an sinful human being!" Gilbert exclaimed as he went under the covers. _Woah, a virgin?!_ Lovina thought as she tried to stifle in a laughter. "Si, you're a terrible one." Antonio nods as he went along with it. Gilbert shot out from the bed when he felt something coming. He ran to the nearest bathroom, didn't care whether to leave the door open and headed straight for the toilet bowl. There he did his business of hurling out all those sick and grotesquely coloured fluid that was unsightly and didn't look pretty, followed by an awful sound and a splash sound effect, telling the others out of the bathroom that he puked.

Lovina didn't like it since it made her feel like hurling as well whereas Antonio sat there with a smile on his face. Gilbert came back with a wet face, having drops of water trickling down his chin. Lovina couldn't help but get out from the room before she smells of vomit. Antonio tossed an article of clothing to him, a tank top to be précised but he won't need to wear that. "I'm taking a bath and I expect a glass of water on the table!" Gilbert told the Spaniard as if he owned the house, to which Antonio simply agreed to. "And does mi amigo want the truth?" Antonio shot a wink and a smile at him, receiving a flustered glare from the albino. "I'll take that as a yes" He cheerfully said as he left the room for the albino to have all to himself.

Gilbert stepped into the shower, and felt a pair of arms hugging him from behind. 'Gott, Toni! Next time tell me before you get in!" He wanted to punch the Spaniard for barging in on him. "But you won't let me either way, si?" The Spaniard pouted before telling him that the reason he was in the bath was because Lovina couldn't stand the stench so either he takes a bath or he gets out of his own house.

"Gott, you're hopeless" Gilbert complained as he washed his hair, hoping that his hair wasn't as stinky as his body. "—And it's because of Lovi" The Spaniard ended with a dark tone as he stared to the tiled floor. Gilbert gulped, knowing that it was a 50/50 bad choice to steal away the Spaniard's belongings. Heck, you can even call Lovina his belonging because back when the Spaniard and the Italian dated, Antonio would claim Lovina as his own by saying "She belongs to me!" and "She's mine!". No turning back now, is there?

"Look, Toni. I said I'll gi—"

Antonio pinned him to the wall with one hand and glared at him. "You'll give her back? Is that what you said? So you really are treating her like a plaything!" Honestly, Gilbert wouldn't like it if he had to give her back. He already fell for her, no? But as much as he didn't want to hurt his friend, he had to. But a question comes into mind. " And you? Easily agreeing to it? Isn't that even crueler? Having to break her heart with the only thing she hates. Comparison and favouritism. You're no different either" Gilbert candidly told him with nothing except dullness in his eyes. How much the Spaniard wanted to punch him equaled to how much Gilbert wanted to punch Antonio as well.

" Guys, you've been in the shower for too long! Get the fuck out already" Lovino shouted from downstairs, snapping them out of their hateful trance that went against their deed of friendship. "I'm telling her the truth any day I like even if you like it or not." Antonio said as he left the bathroom, successfully getting rid of the horrible stench. Gilbert stared at the Spaniard until he left. He then went ahead of his own business, putting on his pants that were the only thing that seemed clean to wear and didn't smell that terrible.

* * *

"The hell's taking them so long?!" Lovina mentally screamed, pulling the pillow close to her chest as she flipped through the channel that had nothing else but channels of the Latin countries. When she heard footsteps on the staircase, she turned to say "About time" but stopped halfway as she didn't want to look at two guys with nothing on except their pants and unbuckled belt. If she were to be a normal girl, she would've flushed and compliment them bluntly, but no, she's Lovina Chiara Vargas and that means she has pride to take care of. She shall not give in to the temptation and only focus on the things that the albino did on their dinner yesterday night.

"So, did I do anything lame yesterday?" Gilbert said as he chugged on a glass of water, using his calm demeanour when he was actually giddy and didn't really want to hear anything about it. But he had to right? He was told by his good old man Frederick to know only the truth and avoid the lies. Antonio sat next to Lovina while Gilbert sat on the other side of Lovina. They both had their other arms to wrap around Lovina's shoulder, making her feel uncomfortable and everything else. _God, where's Feli when you need her?! _She told herself silently as she felt the intense aura beside her. Being as calm as she could, she sat straight and when she knew the Spaniard only let them stay for the night even without knowing, she knew he needed an explanation.

"Okay, so we were going to that dumb diner of yours right? Right. Then someone spoke bullshit about your Germ—"

"I'M GODDAMN PRUSSIAN. GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT, LADY."

"Okay okay, geez. Prussian bloodline. Then you had to fuck it all up and we got kicked out of that shitty

place. After that, you were sulking about not having your beer or whatever, so I forced myself to go into

that bar or pub or thing with you to keep your damned ass in line. And then, you got drunk so I drove

here because you puked on my heels and there's no way am I ever going to let that slide. Reminder, buy

new ones next time we go out, got it? Anyway, here we are."

Gilbert slumped back into the sofa, arms wide open but hanging from the sofa. He spread open his legs and sighed, tilting up his head and closed his eyes. He was relieved he didn't do anything against the law but he was silently crying for his wallet. _May you rest in peace, mein dear babies. _He silently prayed for his cash and credit card that almost hit its limit. He placed his heels on the table, straightening his legs as he crosses his left leg on his right, sinking into the sofa as he crossed his arms behind his head, casually sitting as if it's his own house.

"Oi, do you really think it's alright for him to do that, bastard?" Lovina looked at the Prussian with eyes gleamed with hopeless faith, practically forwarding the question to the Spaniard. Antonio shot her a smile, nodding as he agreed. Lovina shook her head and walked upstairs to where the guest room was. "I'm using the bathroom in the guest room, bastards" She candidly told them both as she placed her hand on the rail, making her way to the vacant room.

"Wait, why was she in that get up anyway?" The albino asked. Antonio was about to put in the disk he wanted to watch but paused, trying to think of what happened. "Oh yeah, about that… I was drunk as well and I puked onto her clothes!" He nonchalantly told him with a happy tone and a cheerful face. _And she's not mad with him?! Biased bitch! _He gaped at the reply. That was not fair at all. How come he gets scolded but she didn't scold her ex? That's totally prejudice.

When Antonio finally got the movie to start, they were enjoying themselves by commenting and criticizing the acting of the actors like how they used to back when they were in high school until they heard a crash from upstairs. They both looked at each other in the eye. Gilbert nudged the other's arm but Antonio did the same to his. Then Gilbert again, then Antonio's once more. They did it until both of them got so pissed, they played rock paper scissors but they got interrupted.

"Will one of you just get up here and help me?!" Lovina's voice screamed through the house. And that was not just any scream. It was the she-devil-is-too-pissed-she-needs-help-but-I-don't -want-to-get punched-at-sort-of-scream. "You do it!" Antonio pulled Gilbert's hand. "Nein! You do it!" Gilbert shouted back. There is no way in Hell or Heaven is he going to ruin his self proclaimed perfectly awesome face. "But you're her boyfriend!" Antonio wailed as tears formed at the corner of his eyes. This trick worked on others but it doesn't work on the other two people of Bad Touch Trio. Gilbert pulled his hand away, rubbing his wrist as a red mark was left on it. "But you still love her right?! You do it!" Antonio placed his hand over Gilbert's mouth, hoping she didn't hear it. "Shush, mi amigo. As much as I hate you dating her, I wouldn't want her heart broken again!" Antonio scolded him, trying to check for any implications that were the sounds of the Italian overhearing them. When he heard nothing, he relaxed and removed his hand from the albino's mouth.

When they reached the guest room, everything in it was a mess. Lovina was still on the floor, her feet was stuck in a tangle piece of long cloth, making it hard for her to move. "Don't just stand there! Help me goddamit!" She exclaimed as she pouted in frustration. "Lo siento, Lovi" Antonio knelt down and lent her a hand for her to stand up. He brought her to the bed, helping her sit down as he tried to entangle the cloth. Gilbert stood in jealousy. Sure, he was attracted to the Italian when he was still hanging out with the French and the Spaniard, conducting pranks together. When Elizaveta rejected him, he was sure that he saw her only as a getaway for his feelings towards the Hungarian. Now he was sure that the thought no longer was in his head. He was sure he was right.

Right about what he had said to her days ago.

"_Toni is right. It really is easy to fall in love with you"_

He started banging his head on the nearest wall, trying to get that thought out of his head before he started acting weird. _Get out of my head, get out of my head, get out of my head. _He didn't stop even though he already received weird looks from Antonio and Lovina. He didn't hear them coming at all. "Hey bastard, are you okay?" Lovina grabbed his shoulder, squeezing it because she was once told by Ludwig that his brother hated it when someone touched his shoulder. Gilbert jolted and hissed. "The hell was that for?!" He never liked his shoulder being touched. It reminded him of something that had happened to him and he doesn't want to remember about it. Lovina jerked back but stood her ground. "Because you didn't hear me!" She hid behind the Spaniard, scared of how Gilbert reacted and became wary of what may happened. "How about I give both of you a happy charm? Fuso—"

Antonio was hit on the head for misreading the atmosphere. He didn't get it at first, because his friend wanted him to act along, no? So why not? Looking at the possibilities, Antonio could only find the last option was that Gilbert actually did fell for her. But let's cross that out. He promised her back, didn't he?

Lovina whipped her hair and tied it to the back, her locks falling on her sides but her curl was stubbornly stood out. Gilbert was always curious about the curl, so he wanted to see what it actually was. When he was close enough to touch it, he was elbowed in the stomach by the Spaniard. When he fell to the floor, he placed and arm to his stomach, rubbing it to make ease the pain. "The hell was that for?!" He growled in pain.

Antonio had a grin on his face as his eyes gleamed in anger. He casually stood in front of Lovina with an imminent murder aura hanging. The second side of him had appeared. The side that Gilbert didn't want to see nor want to deal with. The albino never enjoyed the company of the Spaniard whenever his over protective side took over. Gilbert would piss his pants every time that happened. "Hey Gilbert? You know what?" Antonio came to him closer, his voice had a hint of malice in it. Gilbert trembled, overshadowed by the Spaniard as he sat on the floor. "What?" He tried to say but his voice cracked, indicating his fear had already came over him. A light chuckle came afterwards. Now Gilbert was really scared. Like, really scared that his so-called awesome level had dropped below zero.

"If you want to touch her curl like that again, I'll –" The Spaniard got cut off when Lovina coughed. Gilbert silently thanked the Italian in his heart, forever grateful that she saved him from the one thing he didn't like about the Spaniard. "Hey bastard, you do realize you have no authority over me, much less, you have no rights to act like you're my lover, right?" She said with a stern voice, emphasizing on the last part. Antonio swallowed hard, realizing that he almost forgot about the promise. He turned back to her with a happy face, one that looked fake enough for others to find it genuine. Gilbert scowled in annoyance.

The Prussian got up, having one hand to support him from falling. "But Lovi, I'm still your boss!" Antonio said as he tackled the Italian with a hug, nuzzling his face into her hair. Gilbert got pissed. He shot him the finger but on the other hand, he was thankful that the Spaniard didn't see him do that or else he'd have to pay a finger or more of his limbs. And no. He did not want to go into comatose. He shivered when he recalled the last time he pissed Antonio off.

It was just a tomato. A round, plump, red tomato. And Gilbert took a bite of it, knowing that the Spaniard would be mad at him because the tomato was reserved for Lovina. He was then hospitalized for a month because of broken ribs.

Lovina shot him glares. Gilbert jerked back. He didn't expect her to send him her infamous dagger glares. It made him feel intimidated. He pouted and started to repeatedly touch his index fingers against once another as he apologized. The Spaniard let go of the Italian, walked up to his friend and patted him on the shoulder. He leaned closer to the albino's ear and merely whispered.

"The next time you do that, I'll castrate you unless Lovi lets you."

Gilbert shuddered at the tone used. The Spaniard left the room to them, in hopes that Gilbert would get changed faster . Lovina left as well as she was done changing. All she needed to wear now were her boots but that would have to wait for later. She headed downstairs to the kitchen, leaving the Prussian alone in the room. Gilbert scratched his head, ruffling his silver white hair as he did so. He slipped on a white v neck shirt, having only two buttons from the top undone. Slipping on his blue denim jeans followed by a black loose vest that hanged down to his waist. Because he wanted to fit in, he wore a black fedora and black wristbands on each wrist, then a pair of red canvas converse. He looked at himself in the mirror, having a smirk forming on his lips as he was satisfied with his appearance.

He headed down, a hand on the railing, carefully stepping down on each step as to not trip. His head was still hurting him but not as much. He saw Lovina waiting by his car, her foot tapped repeatedly in frustration. When she noticed him, all she did was shout at him to get there faster and drive her back home where his brother was probably sexually frustrated over the fact that her sister was taking so now he's raping Feliciana. He didn't want his brother to go to jail so being the older brother, he did just as told but instead was stuck in the jam with an annoyed Italian.

* * *

She clicked her tongue when she saw the lights turning to red. They were so close to drive on green but the red light had to take over. When she glanced to the driver's seat, she noticed that the Prussian was restless, having bags under his eyes that clearly had no intention of hiding on his pale white skin. Slumping back into her seat, she lowered her body until her eye level was matched with the dashboard.

She then recalled of what she had overheard in the house.

_"You'll give her back? Is that what you said? So you really are treating her like a plaything!" _

_ " And you? Easily agreeing to it? Isn't that even crueler? Having to break her heart with the only thing she hates. Comparison and favouritism. You're no different either" _

_ "But you still love her right?! You do it!" _

_"Shush, mi amigo. As much as I hate you dating her, I wouldn't want her heart broken again!" _

She could see the wisp of air swirling as she breathed out. _Winter's coming I guess _, she thought. She stared at the flickering yellow lights of cars and hummed to the tune of the music currently playing on the radio. She absentmindedly asked a question to herself. "Am I just a play toy?"

Gilbert thought he heard something, but when he thought of it again, he decided it was just some sort of glitch on the radio station he was enjoying. Lovina sighed as she saw his stupidity. "Fuck! Stupid jam stopping me on my way to save my own damn brother's virginity. Fuck fuck fuck" He chanted repeatedly as he banged his head on the steering wheel, sometimes honking as he did so. Lovina chuckled at the action.

Wait.

Did she just chuckle at the albino? She thought about it again and realized that she did. She felt her face grew hot as she realized. The only other thing she would chuckle at other than someone suffering or something she enjoyed would be at the Spaniard. Now Gilbert was to be added into her list? She wanted to slap herself. Getting back to the question she asked herself, she found the possibility of something had happen so might as well ask, right?

"Hey bastard, I have a question for you." She asked, peering out from her window. She didn't want to look at him in the eyes when she would ask the next question.

"Yeah? Ask away!" He cheerfully answered ; she noted that.

"Why me? "

"Because you're the—"

"Don't give me that shit!" She snapped at him, tugging his neckline and glowered at him. Having hearing the honks from behind them, it was a green light. She let go of his collar and went back to her previous position. When Gilbert drove forward smoothly, she guessed it was a chance to ask again.

"I heard your conversation with the tomato bastard. Now don't give me the shit that I'm used so that she'll get jealous and Toni'll get jealous over us dating. I don't see that!"

When Gilbert heard the tone she used, his heart broke. His brows were knitted and his grin faltered into a frown. As much as he promised that he wouldn't touch her for a month until she fell for him, he cupped her cheek and saw that twin streaks of tears rolled on her cheeks and her scowl was making it obvious that she bit her lower lip.

"Then how about I tell you lat—"

"I want it now! Explain so that I would get it! I don't want to be left behind anymore! I just want to know what's going on!" Seeing her falter like that, he felt a pang to his chest that stirred his stomach in a horrible way. He knew this feeling. He felt it once when Elizaveta went to him crying that Roderich declared he only saw her as a younger sister. That was before Roderich actually realized how he felt. It was the same feeling back then.

He caved in and drove to the side. Parking at a spot where cars would pass by, only wondered if the car was broken was fine enough as long as they don't get a fine from the police. He took off his seatbelt and leaned closer to her. That was when he realized that she was holding back her tears. He unbuckled her seatbelt and wrapped his arms around her neck. It was painfully obvious that no one had let her in when she wanted to know about something. She cracked for the first time. He rubbed her back in smooth circles, humming an old tune that his mother taught him when he was a child.

"There there, mein prinzessin. " He hummed lightly, whispering words of comfort to her. Her cries subsided. She knew she had to stop before it became annoying. She didn't like being annoying and a burden to others. She didn't like pity nor mercy towards her, especially sympathy. She hated the feeling. She pulled him away from her, wiping away her tears with her sleeves after she did so.

"Tell me the truth. I don't care if it's bad or good, just tell me." She mustered up all her strength in her voice to not let any stutters and pauses in her speech. Gilbert gave her credit for that. He fidgeted in his seat, trying to find the right starter.

Giving up on finding the most appropriate one, he started with the worst he could think of.

"Let's say I got fed up and I couldn't take it anymore so I went to Toni. I asked for you until I at least got over the fact that Liz and Roddy got together. He was super pissed but I persuaded him. Then when he couldn't find a way to hand over you, I told him to break up with you. He punched me then Feli and Luddy came over and I told them everything. Your sister got super mad and mein bruder wanted to kill me that time. Then it came down to her acting as Toni's lover until I got over it and Luddy had to wait. "

When Lovina was about to ask why her, Gilbert beat her to it.

"Just so you know, I had my eyes on you, second after Liz. Remember that one time you fell into the pond and your panties was visible? Yeah, I thought it was funny at first then Toni elbowed me and helped you out. Then after that, I couldn't help but catch myself looking at you whenever you're there and Liz isn't."

All Lovina could do as a reaction was punch him in the ribs. "The hell was that for?!"

"Because you didn't tell me earlier!"

When Gilbert looked at her, her eyes were obviously puffy from crying. What else could he do about that fact? Tell her about it nonchalantly and let everything go as if they were simply water or air? He can't do that. He couldn't bring himself to.

He felt the clutches on his collar getting loose, so he relaxed a little. Then he heard muffled sobs. "You could've told me earlier…bastard "

All Gilbert knew at the moment was hug her back, only closer and a bit more relaxed, having known that the Italian had broke down her walls for him. He carded his fingers through her hair, rubbing locks of her hair with his index finger and thumb, trying to avoid the unknown yet trademark curl that almost cost him his life.

Lovina in return, knew that when she can cry into someone's arms without feeling the need to build up walls, she was aware that she might have grown a little seed for affection towards the albino. The night seemed long but they knew that when Gilbert was all she could have to cry at for the moment, and the fact that Lovina really needed someone to have a shoulder to lean on, all they wanted was to keep each other company. Gilbert hoped that the night would last longer whereas Lovina wished that the place for the albino in her heart would slowly go away as she realized that if she let him in, there would no longer be love for the Spaniard when Gilbert gives her back to him.

* * *

A/N: How do you write crack? I can't. So that's why when I re-read the chapter in case of any flaws in chapter plots, I found out that there was hardly any crack. Straight to the point; I'm thinking of changing the genre to something else but I don't know what other genre was suitable. So please do tell me in a review or when you want to give me a review!

And now I apologize for the late because my Internet crashed and I have school (I'm not even 14 yet). On the good side, I got great grades for the exam! I just wanted to tell you guys that. You guys know how much an author loves a review, so please do leave me one and I might consider any plot you thought of in a review for the upcoming chapters because sometimes I got author's block and all that thing. Other than that, I'm writing a fan fiction for my dear friend and it's Hunger Games, so expect that uploaded when I get it done and here's a shameless fan fiction promotion: Confidential Council.

It's written by my twin sister so read it and give her a review alright? That's all and I'm sorry for the long Author's note! Adios, mi amigas~!


	6. Chapter 6

The ward was lit with bright white light that burned her eyes. It was a private room of course. Her _Nonno _was very fussy about sharing with other people. She crossed her arms across her chest, huffing as she chewed her lower lip. Tapping her foot impatiently like it was a very old habit of hers, she tried to ignore the very cheerfully contrasting atmosphere around her.

"It's great to see you healthy again, _Nonno!_" Feliciana literally leaped from Lovina's side and hugged her grandfather. She nuzzled against her grandfather's cheek, showing her affection like she always does with everyone else. Their grandfather patted her back, accepting the embrace and chuckling like Feliciana's infamous bone crushing hug was no big deal. Inside, he was trying to escape. When he noticed Lovina who stood by the door, he gestured for her to come closer. She turned her head harshly, refusing in a manner that saddened the elder.

"Lovi, come here and give your _ Nonno _a hug!" He stretched open his arms after Feliciana let go. She grunted and stepped closer and leaned. She hugged him hesitantly but being the doting grandfather, he immediately crushed her in his hug that was second to Feliciana's deadly one. She tried to wriggle out but failed. She was struggling but choked instead so she decided to let it slip. It wasn't like any other day they could visit him in the hospital, couldn't they? He was always hospitalized due to his health, and yet, he still had time to care for his granddaughters.

"_Andiamo a prendere qualcosa, nonno_?" Feliciana asked, trying to give her sister a chance to escape while the elder thinks. The strength in his arms loosened, making it possible for the feisty Italian to wriggle out and be free. Her grandfather pouted at the absent feeling in his embrace but thought for a moment. Lovina rubbed her arms, massaging her upper arms as she cursed at his strength. When he did thought of something, he gambled the risk of being pulverized by his lovable older granddaughter.

"I want that nurse with the huge rack to serve me!" He said gleefully with a smile before his face was smothered with another of the hospital's pillow. "Be grateful that this is a private room or else you'll be kicked out for sexual harassment towards the female staff!" Lovina glowered as she attempted to suffocate her grandfather. Feliciana giggled, seeing her older sister and grandfather friendly(?) quarrel. Then she noticed the sound of vibration coming from her sister's handbag. "Lovi! Your phone is ringing!" She exclaimed as she realized that a silent call wouldn't get pass through her ears.

Lovina grunted and threw the pillow aside. Rummaging through her handbag, she found the sleek black smartphone. It was an unknown number and whoever it is, the caller had rung her up a couple of minutes ago. Grunting again at the anonymous caller, she pressed the green coloured screen button and placed it against her left ear.

"_Guten morgen, prinzessin_!" A familiar voice shouted through the speakers. Lovina guessed it was pretty loud because she could hear her grandfather and sister snickering in amusement. Lowering the volume to very decent level, she instantly knew it was the Prussian. " The fuck do you want early in the morning?" She spoke with a harsh and bitter tone, just like how she wanted it to be. But instead, it sort of had no effect on the albino. "_Well, I went to Franny's place earlier and he told me about this new cafe around the corner."_ Gilbert muttered through the phone but it was still loud enough for her to make out each word in his speech.

"And you're calling me why?" She asked even though she knew the answer. But she had to make sure. She didn't want to misunderstand that the reason he called her would be because of him wanting to invite her there. There was always another reason he called. Maybe because he was just telling her where he would go and where she could find him if she needed anything. The former was the answer.

"And what makes you think I would go with a bastard like you?" She snickered when she could imagine the disappointed look on the albino's face. On the other side of the phone, Gilbert stuttered a few words as he absentmindedly spoke out each word that comes into his mind. He had not thought of any reason, he just felt like it. So he paused for a while and thought hard for a moment. If he gave her a simple reason, she would flatly reject. If he gave her a complicated reason, she would still flatly reject his invitation. He banged his head on the dashboard as he tried to figure one out. _Why are women so hard to figure out? _He growled in annoyance. Luckily for him, he was inside his car, parking in a spot reserved for him who was a teacher. He received no strange looks, only curious looking ones from the young students that passed by his car in groups.

He pulled out the key from the ignition, making sure to lock the steering wheel in place before that. Stepping out of his red Porsche Carrera GT, he pressed the keychain, making sure it's locked and kept his smartphone on the crook of his neck, tilting his head, craning his neck to a side and lifting up a shoulder. "_I'm waiting" _He could hear the impatience of the Italian. So he gave up thinking of a reason and made up one spontaneously. "Because you're the first one in mind, okay?" He clicked his tongue because that was not what he expected to come out but still, it was true. He smacked himself on the forehead as he passed through the entrance doorway and to the teachers' lounge. Receiving weird looks from other teachers, he waited for a reply as there was only silence. He gave up eventually.

"Alright, alright. I get it. You don't want to come with –" He rubbed the back of his head but was then startled when he heard a laugh from the other side of the phone._"You took that long to think of something?! How dumb are you?" _She said with a snicker at the end of her speech. The albino pouted and frowned. "Well, is it a yes or a no?" He asked, ignoring the possible question of his stupidity. He expected a no, seeing that he did invite the infamous Ice Queen. "_Let me think about it."_

If he knew a lot about the Italian, this was a rare moment of her actually considering an offer despite being someone so anti-social. He did a victory pose and pumped his fist in the air, joyfully and mentally exclaiming his victory.

* * *

Irritation, annoyance, embarrassment, anger, fluster was all she could experience in one go. Her grandfather and sister were giggling at their conversation. They were muttering cute nothings with each other. _Feli! How could you? I thought you didn't like me being with the Potato Bastard's brother! _Her mind screamed. She flailed and then stuttered her words. "I-I j-just wanted to have f-free food, that's a-all!"

Stomping her foot on the tiled floor, she turned on her heel, face flushed scarlet, threw open the door and slammed it close when she went out. Both Feliciana and her grandfather looked at her in surprise. "So, tell me. How are things with you and that German? _Nonno _wants to know all about it!" He told her with a hearty smile. Feliciano frowned lightly but smiled a pained one. She thought her grandfather didn't notice but he did. He grabbed her arm and pulled her down, making sure she landed on a chair safely. "Feliciana Vargas, you tell me right this second what is going on. If you think I didn't notice, you are wrong." His eyes narrowed and his smile turned into a demanding frown.

As much as Feliciana wanted to tell him, she couldn't. She swore after all. Another tug on her arm it hurt her. She yelped in pain, closing her left eye as a reaction. Her grandfather still haven't given up. His look turned serious and if chances were that he still had the adrenaline of a very protective man, he will hack through the systems of Lovina's cell phone register, check who called her, track down the number and get the albino into custody. It sounded complicated to her but she knew that if it was her grandfather, there was no such thing as complications, only simplicity and easiness. She caved in but gave a grunt. She shifted her chair with the arm that wasn't held and sat properly.

Her grandfather realized her actions and knew that whenever Feliciana gave up hope on resisting, she would always act proper. He let go of her arm and kept silent, motioning for her to start the story. Feliciana breathed in and let go. "Promise me you wouldn't be reckless if I told you, _nonno_" She wanted to make sure that both the men involved would be safe. She didn't want her sister to be devastated. Her grandfather was surprised but knew that if he wanted to know the truth, he would give her a chance and follow as she requested. "I swear in the name of my late daughter. Go on" It was an omen for him to swear under the name of his daughter and Lovina and Feliciana's late mother but that was how he showed serious side.

She made sure to inhale deeply and explained to him in a slow pace, making sure he got every word, processed everything and in case anything happens, she would add "Promise me you wouldn't do anything to them" in pauses. After explaining, her grandfather was fuming with anger. He didn't like how his older Italian granddaughter being toyed with but a promise is a promise and something in Feliciana's eyes told him that it was only Lovina's rights to choose who she liked in the end, even if Gilbert promised her to be back with Antonio. But things could change in a matter of time, right? But either way, at least her grandfather was still satisfied that she was still loyal to Ludwig. No, still wasn't the right word. Always would be. But in her heart, does that word also play a role for her sister?

She felt something vibrating in her breast pocket. Excusing herself, she quickly pulled it out and looked at the caller ID. It showed a sequence of familiar numbers but being the airhead that she is, she thought that she might have forgotten to save the number because it felt like the number has called her multiple times. Pressing the green button, she placed it next to her left ear. "_Ciao_?"She greeted in her native tongue.

"_Sorella?" _

Feliciana tensed at the voice. It was familiar, too familiar. She knew the owner of the voice and as happy as she was hearing him, she was scared. Not for her, but for Ludwig. Her grandfather cocked his head to a side as he was curious to know who called his grandfather.

"_Sorella, _pass me to _nonno_"

She reluctantly gave her phone to the elder. Her grandfather took it and placed it next to his left ear. "_Ciao?"_ He greeted in the same accent and tone. "_Ciao, nonno! _It's me, Marcello!_" _

At that moment, both Feliciana and her grandfather tensed up and grew worried for Gilbert.

"Do you think he'll be fine?" Her grandfather said, placing a hand to cover the microphone of the smart phone as he asked for Feliciana's opinion. Feliciana shrugged. "_Nonno_, Ludwig was assaulted and so was Big Brother Toni. I don't think Gilbert would escape." Her grandfather tensed, growing even more worried and pity for the albino.

"Gilbert, I'm so sorry to have such a grandson like Marcello." He muttered to himself before going back to chatting with his grandson who was questioning the sudden silence through the line. They lied by saying that it was the signal. Hopefully, they'll be able to lag Marcello's arrival at their house.

* * *

Gilbert pulled up his car to the entrance, casually breaking the 'No waiting' rule of the hospital. When others honked at him for being an asshole, he shot gave them the finger and only moved a bit. Slipping on his sunglasses, he adjusted them a bit, making sure they sat properly and right at his eye level. The un pained his eyes, blinding him as he waited for her. He took out his phone and decided to play Fruit Ninja while waiting for the Italian. He whistled as he slashed some fruits but then cursed when he slashed a bomb. Why the hell did the bomb have to be in there anyways? It's like a jumpscare only that it wasn't! He grunted as he slashed the bombs three times and lost the game.

Then there were the sounds of knocking on the other window at the passenger's seat. He looked over and saw a blonde man glaring at him. Thankfully for him, he knew this man. "Gilbert, stop hogging up the space and park your car elsewhere" The doctor said to him in a stern voice. But sadly, Gilbert was not one to listen to orders. He stuck out his tongue and slipped off his sunglasses to look at the man fully. "No chance, Vash. Besides, I'm waiting for some—" He heard a click and saw that Vash pulled out a Baretta 92F and pointed the nozzle at him without hesitation. Gilbert frowned. "Fine. Now pull that gun away and how the hell the you get tha—"

"I said, move your car" A voice coated with only venom ordered. He cocked his head to the side, waiting for Gilbert to drive his car away. Gilbert followed with no hesitance at all. Seeing the albino driving away made the Swiss nod to himself. He didn't like rule breakers, much less, that certain albino. As he turned on his heel on his way back, he found the Italian walking out of the automatic doorway. She was furiously walking and didn't care about her surroundings. She kept her head low and bit her lower lip. Vash guessed that Gilbert was here to pick her up. Lucky guess? No. His younger sister overheard them when she ran to his office. She told him. And that was why he knew that the selfish albino would recklessly drive in and break the rules.

He patted her shoulder and she looked up and stopped walking. He grabbed her hand and opened her curled fingers, placing a certain thing on her palm. He told her " Good luck and use this if he's reckless". Lovina knew him as well and he knew her. Technically, they were sort of friends. Sort of. Maybe. Okay, no. they were both anti-social during their schooling years. They met when they went for counseling on socializing. He cocked his head to the side, indicating where the Prussian went to park. She gave him a goodbye and went off. The Swiss sighed and walked away.

When she reached the car, and opened the door, she slid in and leaned against the seat. "Hard day?" He whistled as he turned on the ignition and drifted away from the parking spot recklessly. She absentmindedly nodded. Lovina remembered that the Swiss gave her something. Opening the curled hand she realized what the Swiss had gave her. A Swiss army knife. She smiled to herself and added a mental note to thank the Swiss. Gilbert gave her a confused look as he noticed her smiling to herself that looked freaky. "You okay?" She merely smirked and dropped the Swiss army knife into her handbag.

You can't be too careful could you?

* * *

The café was lit up in yellow fluorescent light, lamps hanging from the ceiling and made the café looked like a bistro café. The food was okay, she noted but she also noted that the pasta was horrible and tasteless. Gilbert on the other hand shook his head in disgust as he complained that the beer wasn't premium German beer and didn't have the fizzy touch to it. "I mean, can this be considered beer?!" He complained as he kicked a the tin can when they both left the café. She had to admit, she did try one once and even though she hated beer, the albino was right. The beer here was total shit.

When they reached Gilbert's car, someone—which Lovina called an asshole—double parked them. Because she was pissed that she didn't get her pasta done right, she took the driver's seat and forced the reluctant Gilbert into the passenger's, and then honked furiously at the double parking car. "If you say that there were no other parking spaces, that's just total bullshit, voi bastardo!" She exclaimed as she didn't care how many looks she was given by the passer-bys. Gilbert on the other hand was sulking that his beer didn't taste right and slammed the buttons on his smart phone as he complained to Francis about the new café. They were almost fined by the council for public disturbance but when the double parker drove his car away out of annoyance, they drove away instantly, avoiding the paper.

* * *

When Gilbert decided that he was the best driver when it comes to recklessness and speeding he was wrong. Oh so wrong. He willingly gave up that title as he literally dug his fingers into his seat when Lovina sped past the traffic light. If he skin wasn't naturally fair white, it would have been now. "Could you please drive slower!" he demanded as he clung onto the dashboard for life. Lovina had her game face on and from the looks of it and Gilbert's perspective, she was treating this as some sort of game; Need For Speed maybe.

Now he knew why Antonio was always pale when he came back home drunk. He thought it was the alcohol acting up in him but apparently, it was Lovina's reckless driving. Mental note to himself, do not let Lovina drive no matter what. The Italian only stopped when the Porsche Carrera GT needed some fuel. She frowned. She loved the tension and the speed she was able to drive with using the car. Gilbert on the other hand, thought that he was blessed for being lucky enough that they didn't get into any accident.

Filling up the tank took the Italian some time, so the Prussian was muttering prayers and swapped seats. Now he took the driver's seat and swore that no matter what happens, he would not let go of the steering wheel if his life depended on it. When the Italian got in, she asked him why, he did not respond. He did not want to die early. He did not want to give in. He did not want to be dead when he gets back home.

* * *

"Are we cursed with a traffic jam or something?" Lovina grumbled, gritting her teeth as she bashed her head on the dashboard. _Doesn't that hurt?!_ The Prussian gave her a gaping look, surprised that she still wasn't bleeding despite the head banging. He had one hand on the steering wheel, the other on the lever. His eyes narrowed in frustration and crimson eyes glared at the unmoving traffic, hoping that telekinesis did exist and that other cars would move out of the way for him to drive through. Nope. Telekinesis didn't exist within him. Grumbling, he turned up the volume of the radio, hoping that there were news on the traffic watch.

Sadly, the radio wasn't being helpful one bit. Only telling that the street they were on was jammed and stuck, he pretty much was convinced that they were cursed with a traffic jam. Guessing that they were still way too far from the traffic light—which was really far—and that there was still a traffic jam behind them, maybe they could play 20 questions but he had to ask something else first.

"So, what's the day today?"

"What?"

"I meant, how many days left to one month?"

_Oh yeah,_ Lovina reminded herself that the trial was still on. She thought that know she knew the truth, he would give up. Apparently, he didn't. " Day 15, I guess" A tone of confidence didn't exist in her answer. _So she lost count as well_, he thought to himself but didn't admit that he too lost count. He honked, trying to make sure the one in front of him moved faster but his own honk was eaten by louder ones that came from different cars.

The radio gave updates but nothing on their situation.

"Let's play 20 questions." He asked out of boredom. "Why?" She asked him back with another question.

"Because I'm bored and there's like 15 days left." He turned to her with eyes full of determination. He did began to feel something serious for her but he didn't acknowledge it as love yet. Yet. He wanted to confirm it, confirm that it was stronger that how he felt for Elizaveta. Lovina on the other hand flushed. She wasn't used to someone staring at her. That was Feliciana's job. Given the attention. Lovina herself wasn't used to attention and was only used to the attention Antonio and her family gave her.

She looked away, mumbling "Don't stare at me like that" her voice trailed as well. Gilbert was surprised that she looked away. He was pretty confident that the Italian would be mad at him for staring but she wasn't. He noted this and made sure he would give her his attention sometime soon. The traffic moved a bit faster but they were still far behind.

"On a scale from 1 to 10, who's cuter? Ludwig or Feliciana?"

"What?" Gilbert was caught off guard.

"You wanted to play 20 questions, no?"

"Well yeah but that wasn't technically a question" He stated simply.

"Doesn't matter. I asked, you dick. Now answer me" She wasn't hesitant on calling him a dick. It was much worse than 'bastard' and she swore that she'll do anything so that there was no attention for her. Too bad for her, Gilbert didn't care. It just told him that she was feisty and he loved feisty girls because they weren't disgustingly sweet. But without hesitance, he answered "My brother Ludwig of course!" .

He adored his brother too much, the Italian noticed. If it was her, she would've answered 'or' because she didn't care and didn't like being biased. She glanced at the digital clock of the car. 4:30 PM. She grunted, knowing that it was still hours before it was evening. She didn't have her siesta today because of him and her family. Gilbert just had to lose his way around the town, getting lost at some crossroad and then stopping at wrong places that one might have been the red light district, seeing that there were women walking around in indecent attires with perverted looking ole men with them.

Noting that the sky was strikingly and calming orange red at 4:30 PM, she guessed that it was close to the cold season. She hummed 'Che Sara' as the song itself was playing on the radio. She closed her eyes, recalling her childhood. Her mother used to hum her to sleep. Same goes with Feliciana. That was before her younger brother was born. Speaking of her younger brother, she wondered what has he been up to nowadays? She's 25, Feliciana a year younger and he was 4 years younger than the eldest Italian.

"How many siblings do you have?" She asked out of curiosity. If he wanted to know about her, she would have to know about him, no?

"2 older brothers and one younger brother. You know Luddy but the other two, even Franny and Toni hasn't met them. No shit because one's in Bavaria, the other in Saxony. Our _ vater _didn't seem to care though. It's like he has little to pay compared to when they were still living with us." He answered, slipping a bit of his native language's words and accent in his speech. Lovina knew what _vater_ meant. She heard Ludwig mention it a few times because he was more comfortable talking in his own native language when he's with Feliciana.

"Does Feliciana know that you're already aware of the truth?"

She shook her head.

"Does the rest know?" She asked him in return.

He too shook his head.

"So none of them don't know except you?"

"Hey, it's my turn but yes."

The Italian nudged him, motioning to him to move forward as the cars began to move forward as well. Then there was another stop. He pulled the brake and it was his turn to ask. "I know this might be uncomfortable for you but Luddy once mentioned that your parents are dead. How? It's fine if you don't answer though but I'll be happy to know since I wouldn't want you to feel discomfort when we go out somewhere."

Lovina flinched and her eyes shot opened when she heard him. The memory haunted her. Her lips pursed as she tried not to feel scared or traumatized when she recalled the incident. She failed. As soon as she remembered, she went into her trauma. She started shivering and her lips were quivering. Squeezing her eyes shut and her ears covered, she had her knees up to her chest and head in between her knees. She was there when they were dying. She was there when they were screaming. She was there, seeing the flames engulfing her parents and turning them into charred ashes.

She started crying. Why did he have to ask her of all times? Why did he ask her? Antonio never asked her because she never told her about her parents. She simply said that they weren't here and he thought that they were abroad. Why did Feliciana had to tell Ludwig that her parents were dead? Why did she have to go through this?

She snapped out of traumatic trance when she felt herself being shook. Her eyes puffy and her nose red from crying she sobbed as she tried shoving the memories out of her thoughts. "Lovina! What's wrong?" Gilbert asked her as he braked when he decided to park at a parking lot while waiting for the jam to dissolve. She clutched his shirt, and lowered her head, not facing him in any way. He was dumbfounded.

He knew he hit a sensitive topic but he didn't know that it was _that _sensitive. Even Ludwig, his brother who happened to be able to coax out anything from Feliciana, couldn't get Feliciana to tell him how it happened. She wasn't there of course. Now, he had the older sister who saw and experienced everything in person and suffered trauma because of it. He relaxed his muscles, his expression changed from surprised to understanding. He wrapped his arms around her, rubbed small circles at her back, soothing her. Her head was resting against his collarbone and her voice muffled by his shirt. He had his own head resting on her shoulder as he muttered comforting words.

"It's okay. I'll stop. I won't ask anymore" He told her but she still hasn't stopped. His voice didn't seem to snap her out from her trauma, it seems. He grew more worried. Has he really hit the trigger he never wanted to flip? He almost gave up when she absentmindedly told him without hesitance.

"I just wanted Cello and Feli to be happy"—hic—"I didn't expect them to actually listened to me! The cat—the cat was just crossing with its family" –hic—"Papa swerved at the corner, I think he was annoyed by me because he was telling me to shut up" Her voice trailed but Gilbert gave her the time to regain her voice.

"And then what happened?" He asked her, calming her down as his tone was smooth and had the touch of care.

"Mama was telling him to stop being angry with me" She clutched the shirt tighter but Gilbert didn't care. He continued doing what he did.

"The cat ran out of nowhere, had a kitten with her. Papa had a soft spot for kittens. He moved out of the way and rammed into an incoming truck" Her voice had the touch of strain and pure fear. Gilbert was shocked. He heard about that accident when he was young. It was the headline on the front page of the local newspaper once. The truck was actually carrying fuel—diesel—and when it rammed into the car—which Lovina and her parents were in—the fuel caught fire and both truck and car caught fire and exploded by combustion and gas interaction with fuel. There was only one survivor, the rest were burnt to death.

He didn't expect that she was the survivor. He wanted to tell her that it was fine but she interrupted him. "I heard papa and mama screaming. I escaped with only scratches and grazes. I thought mama and papa were going to escape soon. I didn't think that they would be stuck. They were creaming. I saw them burning in the fire." Her voice cracked and she was threatened to have another crying fit. "I didn't like it. They were telling me to run but I didn't. I couldn't. I was shocked and scared. I wanted to help but I didn't move. Their voices cracked and screamed in pain. I was scared."

Her answer only ended with choked sobs and utter silence after that. Gilbert on the other hand, didn't know whether he should be surprised that the Italian actually told him without suspicions of him using it as blackmail, or, actually felt sad for her as well and try to tell her that everything else was fine and nothing else will be taken away. He guessed none of them would be moment proper. Antonio never told him about this either, so he guess that the Spaniard actually didn't know.

"D-don't you dare tell me that it's okay bullshit. I know it's not and I don't care if you think I'm pathetic. I know I am" It was like she read his mind. Sort of. "Hey, it's alright. I know that feel. At least you actually considered on telling me." He responded, smug plastered on his face. Lovina grunted in dismay, wondering why did she even told him that. Was there something wrong with her today? She never even told anyone—save for her family—what she actually saw.

"How about we go on with something less touchy?" he said, going back into the traffic as there were hardly any cars now. She nodded and went back to her seat, shifting to find comfort so that her ass wouldn't feel sore when she walks out later. It took them 5 minutes before they reached the junction into Lovina's neighbourhood and another 5 minutes to reach her house.

During that time, they exchanged questions like "What subject were you good in?" and "How were you when you were a student?". Those academics sort of related questions. It did relaxed the tension. The albino realized that she hasn't attacked him with a punch for being nosey about her past. Maybe she broke down a wall and he grew up a level. Either way, she didn't seem to attack him. Which is good.

Lovina calmed down and her sobbing subsided. Gilbert wanted to take the risk and it was a good reason. "Do you suffer pyrophobia?" She nodded hesitantly, lowering her head. He ruffled her hair, calming her down and telling her that 'it'll be fine', 'it's okay' and 'they're safe' to her and all those comforting nothings that she knew were pure bullshit but had to accept to calm herself down. He saw the familiar looking house and continued down the street.

Pulling up his car at her porch, he pulled out the keys from the ignition, unlocked the doors and went out, he wanted to open Lovina's door but she wasn't dependent like any other girl he met. She opened on her own and walked up to her door, fumbling with the key, figuring out which one was which key. Gilbert looked around and since it was his turn to ask, his last question was "You mentioned this cello guy earlier. Who is he?"

When she found the key, she heard a crash and guessing that it was a burglar, she forced Gilbert to go ahead of her because she claimed that men should protect the women while in fact, she was scared of facing something she doesn't want to face.

When he did get in, he met face to face with someone who looked like Lovina but his curl was on his left like Feliciana's, though, it was angular and his hair had a slight orange touch. The man in front of Gilbert was almost as tall as Gilbert. His facial features were close to Lovina's but he had a very gleeful expression that was like Feliciana's.

"Who are you?" They both asked in unison.

Lovina wondered why Gilbert stopped, so she went in front of him to check. Instead, she was greeted with a full force hug that was third to Feliciana's and second to her grandfather's. Gilbert was shocked with the sudden attack. _The hell?!_

"Ah! _Sorella_! It's good to see you again!" The unknown man greeted Lovina as he called her 'sister'. He tackled her to the floor and smothered her with kisses on her cheek but she looked disgusted at the same time embarrassed. The Prussian was once again dumbfounded. Who was he?

"Dammit, Cello! Don't do that!" His question was answered. _Wait, this is Cello?_

"Um, may I ask if you're her brother?" Gilbert asked as politely as he could. It was as if the man had a personality switch, he turned to him and got up, glaring daggers at the albino. "And what if I am? Who are you and why are you with _sorella_ and _sorella_ isn't with Big Brother Toni?"

_Ah, so he is Cello. Wait. Toni knows this kid?_

"Marcello! That's no way to greet someone!" Lovina scolded him as she propped herself up. Gilbert offered her a hand, which she reluctantly took and was pulled up by the albino. She patted her back, dusting off the dust that stuck onto her back. Gilbert guessed that his name was Marcello and his nickname is Cello. And since he called Lovina '_sorella_'—the same term Feliciana called Lovina—He guessed that Marcello was Lovina's younger brother.

"I know. _Sorella_, tell me why Big Brother Toni isn't here and he is here instead." Marcello sweetly asked his sister, skipping as he pushed Gilbert aside and clinging onto his sister's arm. Gilbert growled at the rude manner but he'll be a hypocrite if he scolded him. He did that to people as well.

Lovina grunted and sighed. She sat herself down and forced Gilbert to sit next to her and away from Marcello, fearing that the youngest Vargas sibling might attack him. "Don't you dare attack him if I told you. If you did, I'll deal with you like how I did when you assaulted the Tomato Bastard"

Gilbert felt a shiver down his spine. Antonio was assaulted by this kid? This small, unfit for combat bodied kid? No wonder when they met on a rendezvous the day after Antonio went to Lovina's house for the first time, the Spaniard was covered in bruises.

"_Si_" Marcello mumbled after a pause. Gilbert prepared himself for anything he didn't want to happen. Lovina breathed in and simply stated one thing.

"He's Gilbert Beilschmidt. Older brother to _sorella_ Feli's boyfriend, Luddy and he's my new boyfriend. Don't you dare attack him you little piece of glorious and beautifully cute looking piece of shit"

Gilbert didn't know whether he should be glad that Marcello didn't attack him or feel wary when Marcello suddenly tensed and kept quiet, glaring daggers at him with a scowl on his face, clicked his tongue in annoyance as if he wanted to send the mafia to anonymously murder the albino.

It was just his luck that Marcello was very fond of Lovina, he guessed.

* * *

A/N: Yes, Gilbert drives a Porsche Carrera GT. Yes, Vash is a doctor who carries guns and threatens people no matter where they are. Yes, Alfred is a smartass who is the Chief of the Research Centre. Yes, Marcello is a kid who is very protective over his sisters. I had a hard time writing this because I was scared if it was rushed. In any case, sorry for the late update. I had exams and I must say that I am grateful that I didn't write for that time. I got great grades~ So yeah. Reviews, favourites and follows are loves~ /Should I get a beta reader? /


	7. Chapter 7

"Stop staring at me"

He felt like a hole was burning into him. The albino crossed his arms and growled in irritation. Sadly, the one staring did not seem to be affected. "Not unless you tell me why you're with_ sorella_" he said with a bitter tone. Gilbert frowned at the response, absently complaining about the other's mild rudeness.

Marcello would not give in. He would not. He propped himself up on the couch, knees to his chest and arms wrapped around his legs. He blinked only once or twice for the past few minutes. That or the albino just missed a couple because it did not seem too human if they did not. Unless he is not human. Gilbert glumly glanced away, ignoring the hiss from the youngest of the Vargas siblings. He threw his head back and sighed deeply. He was all too bored and having a staring competition with the young Italian won't do much at all.

Lovina was not in the house at the moment. Right after they arrived and having Gilbert nearly assaulted by Marcello, Lovina realized that their food supply ran out and she had originally planned to stop by the grocers' after her jobs was done for the day. When she told him to take care of the house while she was gone, she did not tell him that by 'taking care of the house' also meant by 'taking care of Marcello'. That or she had briefly forgot that her brother was present.

Gilbert gave up. There was no chance for him to ignore the Italian. He swung his legs back and forth and leaped like a kid, landing straight on his two feet. He stretched his arms and arched his back ; the sounds of snaps making him realize that his body must have adjusted to the comfort longer than it should have been. Hands on his hips, he took glances throughout the room. He dis not have the chance to do so earlier because he had to be lectured along with Marcello for being too brash. Seriously, he did not even do anything wrong!

The living room had a nice and simple looking interior. Nothing to classy but nothing too plain. Just simple but with the touch of modern lifestyle. It was not stuffy as well. There were a lot of spaces to fill in but he left wondering about them, guessing that it made it easier for them to move around. He walked nearer to the walls, examining the photos that were hanging. Eyeing the smallest one, he leaned in. It had a young looking man and an equally young looking woman smiling next to each other. The man had his arm around the damsel's waist, pulling her in for an Eskimo kiss. Gilbert questioned the photo. They reminded him of someone.

"That's papa and mama."

Gilbert turned and noticed that Marcello had been watching him—and not staring—and gradually, he had walked up next to Gilbert. He still had the pillow in his arms but his clenches were not as tight as before. The Prussian swallowed, suddenly recalling the story Lovina had told him earlier. He traced the frame of the photo. He had always wondered how the Italian grew up foul mouthed and with a rotten personality. Now he still questioned it but even so, he could vaguely guess the answer.

"I guess _sorella_ told you, huh? " Marcello gazed at the photo. He really missed them but sadly, they were not present for most of his life, so he could not remember. It did not help that the fact that they died when he was young either. He was just so young that he could not even remember the voice of his own mother or father.

"Yeah…" Gilbert nodded absently. If there were any guesses on her lifestyle as a child, it would have been how she was taught to act as an adult first before her younger siblings. She was the eldest. She had to be the responsible one. It reminded of him when he was younger. His grandfather would tell him that it was also his job to act responsible because what if his two elder brothers were not with them anymore? Who would raise Ludwig?

He chuckled lightly as he realized that his grandfather actually taught him something useful. Because it has been a couple of years since his brothers had left for Saxony and Bavaria and they have not returned either. Anyone could say that they had seceded from the family. But they had everything. Wealth, health, charms, everything. So Gilbert always questioned why they left. But never asked. He was not one to bother with others' affair after all.

"What are you laughing for?" Marcello gave him a confused look. He cocked his head to his side, his angular curl bouncing as he did so. The albino decided to get something to eat from the pantry.

Sure it was not his house and everything but when hunger calls, nothing could stop him from filling up that empty stomach of his. Now where did Toni say the pantry was…

To him, Antonio was practically a person who blurts out unnecessary information on random occasions. At one point of the elementary school's lunch break, they went to Francis' restaurant for a lunch break. The Spaniard practically told them the entire house interior in full detail. How to get there and how it looked like as well. It was almost creepy though.

The albino shrugged it off and tried to find it by smell. Since this was the house of a couple of Italians, there should be some spices, right? Unless that was just some mere and typical stereotype, he would make himself look like a fool. Trusting his sense of smell, he had found himself inside the kitchen. "Wow, can't believe you actually sniffed your way here" Marcello complimented him for his accomplishment.

Well, this was not where Gilbert wanted to go but maybe the pantry was somewhere in this room. He did not know. He did not live here anyway. "So, kid. Where do you keep the snacks?" He candidly asked, trying to see if there are any doors or something that could lead to the pantry. "Oh that, I have no idea" Marcello mentioned, having the touch of resentment in his tone. "Woah! So you're telling me, you have no idea where your snacks are? You live here!" Gilbert exclaimed, bemused by the fact that there might not be anything for him to snack on.

"Practically. I live in dorms, if you must know. But I do know that _sorella_ is the one that hides them. Note, I said, hides them" He shrugged. Gilbert was mortified. He could not accept the fact that a child did not have any snacks or anything else to snack on, and even worse, their older sister hid them. It was like a crime to him.

"You poor, poor, depraved soul. Tell you what. I'll find those snacks, and I'll show you heaven. Not that kinky heaven though. Ew, no. Why would I even –" Gilbert stopped when he felt Marcello pushing a hand on his lips. "I get it. I get it. Now hurry on and find it. She hid my favourite crisps too" Marcello himself did not want to listen to his perverted rambling.

* * *

Hours passed and they still haven't found anything. They searched through drawers, opened the exact same fridge for at least 20 times(because Marcello doubted him), and Gilbert himself actually bothered to check if the three tabby cats outside had hid them as well. Who knows if they had help her in a way.

"Anything new?" Marcello asked, wiping his hand that were covered in sweat. He cursed mentally. He did not know that his sister was exceptionally good in hiding things. Gilbert was searching through the cabinets, desperate now. "Nothing! And oh! I found a key!" Gilbert exclaimed, noticing a shape that resembled an old-fashioned key. He fished it out of the cabinet, then noticed how dusty it was. He rubbed the flat head of the key with his thumb, removing the dust. Marcello came closer, slowing his pace as he came to realize what the key was.

Marcello grabbed—note, it was more like snatching—the key from Gilbert's hand. He eyed it intently, a light smile forming on his lips. "This is _sorella's_ key…" His voice trailed as he recalled their childhood together. He chuckled as he remembered the time when his sister scolded him for toying with the key. He rubbed his thumb across the insignia that was shaped onto it. A small iris followed by sprouting vines that lead to the end of the key. It was his sister's past treasure.

"It was a present of mama and papa before we left Italy after they died." Marcello frowned slightly. Few years passed since their death but he could not forget about them. Gilbert did not know why he had told him but seeing that the Italian male had told him little of his sister's past, he guessed that Marcello must have already felt comfortable about letting the albino into their family's past. It was true. Marcello felt utter comfort that unlike when Antonio had been with his sister, he had been nothing but a worrywart and chatterbox. Marcello labeled him as 'annoying'. Gilbert though, he kept silent when he dwelt into a bit of his past, letting him talk and not showing the sympathy that they should have had ages ago, back when they had no one except their grandfather. He liked that. He knew it was useless to remember the past and move on, so he would not let sympathy take over years after.

"Wait… you said before you left Italy. Does that mean you transferred here? I couldn't guess because your _schwester_ had no accent!" Gilbert said. He never did take them for true Italians as they had only left a tiny bit of Italian accent in their speech. He figured that they were of Italian nationality but were born with English as a first language from the start. They sounded natural and had no flaw or that fast paced talk that stereotypical Italians had. Then again, Gilbert and Ludwig himself were of German heritage and had little to none of German accents, save for the time that they lost control of how the felt.

"_Sorella_ haven't told you when we moved here? You're from _sorella's_ schooling years, right? I saw you with Big Brother Antonio a couple of times around the corner" Marcello absently added. Gilbert nodded. They met through Antonio, and it was just perfect to tag their encounter as 'most unwanted encounter'. They were often at each other's throats, having everyone around them trying to lighten the tense atmosphere or Antonio whisking away Lovina in his presence or sometimes, Elizaveta approaching.

"Then I'm guessing that she never told anyone else about what happened before we moved." Marcello choked his words. A bit of pain if Gilbert noticed it. They both had subconsciously walked into the living room, watching whatever was on television before they had their one-sided staring contest. Marcello plopped down on the settee, the key still in his hand but he smiled lightly. He ushered for Gilbert to sit as well. "So you're telling me or not?"

"Eager, aren't you? Worry not, I'll be sure to let you know about _sorella_ as well."

* * *

A/N: So sorry for being late! The two weeks before, I got sick for an entire week, and it was pretty of the content was written while I had a migraine. The second week I had exams. Well, actually, I have exams for tomorrow and on Thursday. Sorry that this chapter is short too. I intended to have the next chapter focused on when Lovina was shopping, but I had to delay it because this one needs to get out and give you a glimpse that I'm not leaving this story unfinished. Oh yeah, all the previous chapters were un-betaed, and unedited, so if there's any errors, do let me know! By the way, I asked my English teacher if writing contractions were right in an essay, she said it would not be proper unless it is for speech. That and I have no idea if the way I wrote about the pantry was right. In my house, we don not have a pantry, so I do not know how it me please?

If I am lucky enough, I will be able to write out a draft once I am done with my exam paper while waiting for the exam session to end. It is like that in Malaysia. Next chapter would be full of Italicized words. Good luck for me on my exams! :D

Reviews, follows, and favourites are love!


	8. Chapter 8

_"Sorella!" _

_Feliciana screamed before she leapt onto Lovina's body. Both of them fell to the ground with a thud. "Che?!" Lovina snapped, tossing Feliciana to her side as she rolled over. She stood , patting her cream coloured dress. She grabbed Feliciana's hand, pulling her up to stand. Adjusting her sunhat, she tipped it to a side to block the sunlight from blinding her._

_"Ve, Mamma said she has a surprise for us!" Feliciana said in their mother tongue. Lovina rolled her eyes. She liked surprises, but she did not like having others to burden themselves for her. She grabbed Feliciana's hand, leisurely walking side by side with her sister. "Oh yeah, sorella. Have you found what Cello asked for?" Feliciana asked, covering her face with an arm. Her sister clicked her tongue, gritting her teeth in frustration._

_"Yeah, I did..." Lovina replied in the same language. In her free hand, there was a small bouquet of wild flowers. She rolled a stem in between her forefinger and thumb. Feliciana chuckled lightly, lifting their hands together. Lovino choked a startled squeak. She fell forward, only to be lifted by her sister before hitting the ground._

_"Damn it, Feli! I could've been bruised!" She cursed. Feliciana shook her head, mouthing 'Language, Lovi. Language." Lovina sighed, eyeing the ground as they walked back home._

* * *

"Wait.. what? How the hell did you know about that when you weren't with them?" Gilbert asked. He had intently listened to the Italian talking up until the point about Feliciana mentioning Marcello.

"I was about to get to that. Though, let's just say my hobby back then was spying. Want some crisps?" Marcello said, offering a bag of crisps to the albino. Gilbert gestured a 'no', taking another mouthful of his bottle. He let out a satisfied breathe. "Damn, that's good stuff."

Popping the cap of another bottle, he waited patiently for Marcello to stop crunching the crisps. He tapped the television remote control on his knee in a beat.

"Now, where did I stop? Oh yeah, the part about them going home." Said Marcello, dropping a couple of crisps into his mouth.

* * *

_Marcello ran back as fast as he could. He did not want to be caught spying, especially by his eldest sister. When he reached home, he was sweating terribly. He took off his shirt, standing in front of the fan to cool himself down. _

_"Marcello?" He heard the door click. He turned around, then saw his mother opening th_e _door. "Mamma, you're healthy again?" He asked, running to his mother. He clung onto the hem of her dress, playing with the thin fabric. His mother brushed his hair to a side, then tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Not yet... but oh my! Marcello, have you been out to spy on your sisters?" She asked with a tone of hurt._

_"Yes, mamma...are you angry with me, mamma?" He bit his lower lip, looking down as if he was ashamed of himself. His mother cupped his face, lifting up his head. " Oh Marcello, of course I'm angry with you. But promise me, you wouldn't do that again, okay?" She let go of his face. She closed her fist, leaving only the small finger open. "Pinky promise?" She asked with a gentle voice. Marcello grinned. "Mamma knows how to cheer me up, so I'll make the pinky promise with mamma!"_

* * *

" I was such a cute kid back then," Marcello said, unintentionally complimenting himself. He took another crisps then chewing on it loudly. Gilbert shuddered. He was disgusted and considering to slap Marcello.

"And what does your side of the story have anything to do with them?" He asked, taking a gulp after gulp continuously. He kicked off the cushion from the settee, then laying himself down on the settee. He turned on the television, then switched it from the History Channel to MTV. "Wow, you guys actually watch history?" Gilbert murmured in surprise.

"Not sure if it's an insult or a compliment, but yes. Well, mamma was sick, so I asked _sorella _Lovi and _sorella _Feli to get some flowers as a get well gift!" Marcello explained, throwing his arms to his side. He smiled softly, then drew in a breath before continuing.

* * *

_"Mamma's better now. You can see nonno afterwards after we fetch him from the airport," Their mother threw her arms around them. "Yay! We get to see nonno!" Marcello shouted happily. He hugged his mother whereas Feliciana giggled happily. Lovina on the other hand struggled to escape._

_"Lovina, you don't like mamma hugging you anymore?" Their mother asked sympathetically. Marcello dropped off from his mother then hugging his mother's leg. Feliciana tugged their mother's dress._

_"Lovi made mamma cry!" Both of them said in unison. Their mother faked a tear. "Oh, Lovi! You've wounded your dear mamma!" Lovina shrieked as she was scooped up from the floor. "Papa!" Lovina shrieked whereas Marcello and Feliciana screamed gleefully. They let go of their mother, running to their father instead._

_Their father cradled Lovina in his arms. "Papa, let go! I'm too old for this!" She screamed, punching her father's shoulder. She attempted to kick but their mother took her away from their father. "Now, mia bambino. You shouldn't do that, especially when your papa and I brought you a presents." She patted Lovina's dress, dusting off the dirt._

_Both Marcello and Feliciana perked at the mention of presents. They jumped hysterically, screaming "Presents!"_

_Their father got annoyed, grunting at them to keep quiet, then tossing their presents at them. Their mother on the other hand, scolded him for acting like a child. Their father got embarrassed after all three of his children were teasing him. That was how Marcello and Feliciana ended up sprinting before they were caught by their father._

_"Aren't they such a picture?" Their mother said dreamingly. She palmed her cheek, tilting her head to a side as she treasured her family's running spree. Lovina grunted, casting down her eyes. She kicked a cushion, clasping her hands behind her back. "Did you think I forgot about you?"Their mother asked, she crouched down to be the same height as Lovina. "But mamma e – and papa always give Cello and Feli presents first.." Lovina complained. Her cheeks were tinted pink from embarrassment after expressing her slight jealousy for her siblings._

_"And remember what I said? Keep the best for last."_

_She cupped Lovina's cheeks, wiping away the streaks of tears from her child's face. She kissed her forehead gently, then brushing Lovina's front hair to a side. "There, there." She hugged Lovina, rubbing small circles on her back as she muttered comforting words._

_After Lovina was done sobbing, their mother pulled her at arm's length. Then she took out a key from her bag. Her other hand grabbed Lovina's own. She dropped the key onto Lovina's palm, closing her fingers one by one. _

_"Everyone may say Feli and Cello are better than you. Mamma thinks everyone is the same, only different." She wrapped her fingers around Lovina's hand, clenching her fist ever so tightly._

_" I don't understand..." Lovina grumbled._

_"You will one day, bambino. Now, you can use this key for any lock that has the same shape."_

* * *

"Now that I think of it... _sorella _always have access to my things. So that's how!" Marcello exclaimed as he slowly put the pieces together. For the past few years, his sister always seemed to be able to know what has he been doing. _Always._

"Hey, get back to the story!" Gilbert complained, throwing a cushion at the Italian's face. Marcello rolled his eyes. Marcello took the remote control from Gilbert, then turning down the volume. The albino complained about not being able to hear anything. Marcello stuck out his tongue in return. "Wait, why the hell am I even comfortable telling you this anyway?" Marcello asked, suddenly realizing. Gilbert shrugged. "Maybe it's a feeling. Trust me. I get that a lot and I'm pretty sure it happens to everyone."

"Well, you said to get back to the story, so shouldn't you be listening to me?"

* * *

"_..And then maybe, you can find your prince using this key!" Their mother joked. Lovina blushed hazardously. "Mamma!" She screamed, gaining the attention from her siblings and father. She clenched onto the key, punching their mother with her fist. Sadly for her, she was too weak, so their mother could only fake pain._

_Their father peeled her off easily from their mother. Just a simple lift and off she goes. He threw her over his shoulder, patting her behind. "Now, now. That's not how you speak towards your mother," He scolded, but shrugged it off with a laugh._

_Their mother gathered Feliciana and Marcello in her arms, setting them down to enjoy the man of the house and the oldest daughter quarrelling one-sidedly. Lovina kicked her father, yet she wasn't released. Their father lowered her down to the ground, then when she was about to step onto the ground, he lifted her up unexpectedly, throwing her small body up. She screamed in surprise and fear._

_When she was caught by her father, she punched he repeatedly. She sobbed, then never intended to stop shouting at their father. Their mother on the other hand, pulled her back. _

* * *

Gilbert finished the last of his bottles. He made a mental note to buy some more on his way back home later. Marcello set the remote control on the table, crumpling the empty package to a small ball. He threw it in the nearest bin.

"After that was when _sorella _Lovi went with our parents to fetch our grandpa from the airport... he lived in the States while we were in Italy. _Sorella _Feli and I were very excited and happy about that, but sadly, we had to stay at home because I was sick, and _sorella _Feli was the one to take care of me. _Sorella _Lovi liked _nonno _but he favoured _sorella _Feli and I. She knew we loved him more than she does, so she was very keen on hurrying up to the airport with our parents..." Marcello said solemnly, rubbing the key in his hand.

"So that was how it happened?" Gilbert asked absently. He realized what he had said. He intended to pull it back but realized it would be pointless. A question asked is a question asked.

Marcello nodded. He smiled bitterly, recalling his childhood when his parents were around. They were nice people. Friendly, easy-going, cheerful, and understanding. They made a happy family together. They made his childhood happy and he was sure that they also made his elder sisters' childhood happy.

"After that, _nonno _stayed with us for three months. He had to take care of our visa to transfer to the States, our school transfers, insurance and et cetera. During that stay, he taught us English so that we could speak fluently when we moved. True enough, we did and it was a plus because our English isn't heavily accented. He has the custody over us. Papa is an orphan while mamma is a single child born from two orphaned children who met at an orphanage. That's why _nonno _ is understanding,"

Gilbert absently nodded, slowly processing what he was told. He processed the thought about the key, their childhood, and what was told. He sighed and drew in a deep breath. He stood up, squaring his shoulders before grabbing all the empty bottles.

"Where are you going?" Marcello asked, turning in his seat to face the albino.

"Throwing these bottles. The bin is not outside is it?"

"Sadly, it is."

Gilbert groaned, Marcello laughed a bit. The Italian turned up the volume to the max. He had not realized the clicking of the front door because he thought it was Gilbert opening the back door.

"Why the fuck is the living room so fucking messy?!" Marcello jumped in his seat, the key falling from his hands then dropped to the floor with a clank. He fidgeted, trying to think of a come up, then failed.

"Ah _sorella! _You're back. How was your trip to the supermarket? Met any friends?" His voice was faltering. He found the key at the corner of his eyes, and if he could just kick it a bit into the couch, then maybe—

"Marcello! Where did you put Lovi's key?" Gilbert shouted from the kitchen. His head popped out from the door frame. The albino entirely forgot about the key then remembered about it when he threw out the bottles. He stepped into the living room, having not acknowledging our realizing Lovina's return.

"You found my key?" Lovina asked angrily. Marcello shuddered, mentally face-palming. Gilbert noticed her, started muttering endless strings of words in German, knowing very well that the Italian would not like it very much if people knew more than they should.

"Hey, you're early.." Gilbert greeted, trailing then took glances around the place just so that he could avoid the gaze of hers. "Yeah, and when I was just about to go to the kitchen to drop the groceries, you just had to fuck it all up by finding my key"

She dropped down the groceries onto the floor carefully, not wanting to break whatever she had bought. "... And if I heard right, I think you just told him about that goddamned key, didn't you?" She shot a glare at her brother who had flinched. He stepped back, trying to think of a come up again. "No! I was just telling him about my school,"

"Eh? But you were telling me about your childhood in Italy" Gilbert said obliviously. Marcello face-palmed on the spot, dropped to the floor crouching with hands covering his face. The albino clearly had not realized that they were on the verge of death by Lovina.

Lovina tensed, then relaxed. She drew in a breath, slowly taking the groceries from the floor then carrying it. "Tell me why you did that, Marcello." It was clear to Marcello that his sister did not want anybody to know about her as a child. He carded through his own hair, considering the outcomes of what may happen.

"Well, he found your key.. and he knew about mamma and papa from you, so he was curious, so I told him while we were both listening to 22 which Gilbert turned the volume up but I turned it down 'cause it was too loud then when I was done, you were home and yeah"

He played with his fingers, slowly processing the fact that Lovina was the one who had told the albino about their parents.

"Wait, aren't you the one who started to tell him about mamma and papa?" He stated, pointing at her just to emphasize his innocence. Lovina rolled her eyes then strolled into the kitchen, placing the bags of groceries on the table. "Pointless, Marcello. Did he even tell you why we were going out?" She asked, sorting out the items she had bought, then opening drawers and cabinet doors.

Marcello shook his head, stepping into the kitchen. Gilbert followed behind.

Lovina glanced at Gilbert. Gilbert look at her questioningly as if he did not understand. The albino soon registered that Marcello was very protective of his sisters, so telling him what actually happened was like a death warrant. Lovina grinned at him while he was deflated. "You brought this upon yourself, dumbass. You tell him," She whistled, pushing the cereal boxes into the cabinet.

Marcello looked at him, expecting. " Tell me what I don't know," He ordered. He did not request. He did not asked. He had ordered. Marcello began to suspect the albino, eyeing him suspiciously. Gilbert leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. He pondered about how to tell. He pursed his lips and closed his eyes, mind focused on how he would explain and monitoring the other's motions in case if he said something that could be a trigger, he would be dead. No. That was a crime. He would be in a coma. Yes, comatose.

"Well, actually, we dated because the chick I admired for a damn long time got hooked up with Mr. Glasses—don't ask. So I went for the other girl I admired in high school which is your sister" He glanced at Lovina who was banging her head on the kitchen island. She had not expected that, he guessed. He thought again for a moment, seeing that the other Italian had not made a move on him. Marcello must have been starting to plot his death, he decided.

"Then I asked Tonio to break up with her. At first, he rejected, but I begged. He said yes, but with a deal. It was only for a month. But now, I don't think so. Because there was a month, I had eyes on her second after that first chick, and I had her to myself... so ..." He tried looking for a word. He settled on 'accidental'.

"I accidentally fell in love with her for real. Though, your sis doesn't believe it." He almost said 'I guess' when he was indirectly confessing, but he managed to stop himself before saying it. He closed his eyes tightly, expecting a hit. All he got was a "What? That's it?" from Marcello.

Lovina looked at Marcello, dumbfounded.

Marcello looked at Gilbert.

Gilbert looked back at Lovina, questioning why she was looking at Marcello and why was Marcello looking at him.

"That was it? Just that?" Marcello questioned aloud. Gilbert was embarrassed, not knowing what to say whilst Lovina was wondering why her brother had acted nonchalant.

" I thought you were going to be mad" Lovina stated outright. He was very over protective of her, threatening to castrate Antonio back when she was with Antonio if he ever left her for something stupid. For a friend, it was stupid.

"Well, I was. Then he had to say that, so now I'm questioning him and questioning you. I'm mad at Antonio for not being able to stand for his girl, but seriously, " He tilted his head to the side, staring at the albino, "You have a goddamned month, and I guess you started like more than ten days ago? And here you are, not making one bit of an advance on her. Wow, you suck. You should learn from me. And _sorella, _I think you bought too much stuff." He said, pointing at the overloaded grocery bags.

She looked back at the kitchen island and sadly, her brother was right. Then it kicked her.

"Wait, learn from you?"

Marcello nodded.

"And why should I learn from you?" Gilbert was curious. Marcello was clearly way younger than he is. It was fun to see how someone younger than him could be more experienced than he is.

"Because I dated more than 5 girls while you couldn't get the first girl of your dreams and the second girl you loved probably doesn't even love you" He said half-heartedly. It was true. True to the point Gilbert felt like breaking himself into two.

Gilbert was not going to give up. If Marcello was more experienced than he is, than why not learn from him? He may be arrogant, proud and prideful but it was something Old Fritz had taught him back when he did Sports. To learn while you live. Hey, it applies even to picking up girls, right?

He grabbed Marcello's hands. Marcello looked at him happily. "So you wanna learn step by steps to catch my sister?"

Before Gilbert could nod, Lovina said loudly, "Oh no you don't." She shook her head as if she really did not want to be involved. Sadly, she was.

"Yes, yes I do."

Lovina slapped her forehead. Marcello perked up. Gilbert did not know what to expect. Lovina knew what was going to happen. "Oh great, now I have to endure all those stupid shenanigans"

* * *

A/N: Sorry this was late. Sorry, that 45% percent of this was crap and talking. Sorry that I can't think up of anything better. Sorry that I'm sorry.I say sorry a lot, don't I?

In any case, I updated this before I go out of town and off to my grandparents' house for Gawai. I love it there because no one can call me and bother the hell out of me. If you're wondering what Gawai is, it's a festive season that is celebrated by the Dayaks in Malaysia. *Shamelessly promotes*

Since this was a school holiday week, I took the chance and I now have 5 projects to write. All fanfiction but don't expect them. Expect this one because this is going to be updated and if I abandon it, I expect it to be updated by someone trustworthy. But trust me, I would not abandon the story that got me followers and favourites. Enough of my ranting.

Happy Gawai to the Dayaks in Malaysia, and as usual and as I might not deserve it but I still want it, reviews, favourites and followers are love~


	9. Chapter 9

"Explain to me why are we here?"

Lovina grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest. Gilbert sighed deeply. He unzipped his jacket then took it off. Underneath the jacket, he was wearing a short-sleeved white t-shirt. His pants were short pants as he wore them to his Physical Education class earlier that day. He cringed when remembered about his students assaulting him with footballs—soccer, for the Americans. The pain in between his legs was excruciating but it subsided for the past hours. He was hit there for a lot of times and it still hurt when he fetched the Italian from Francis' restaurant.

"Because Mr. Glasses thought that it would be a good idea to have some 'bonding time' on the beach" Gilbert spat as he mentioned 'bonding time'. He kicked the stone in front of him, tying the sleeves of his jacket into a knot at his waist. He pulled his collar, sweating a lot. "_Gott_, Satan must be enjoying himself" He complained to no one specifically.

Lovina nodded, but she herself had no problems with the weather. One, she was wearing shorts. Two, she wore a sleeveless shirt that was cotton. She smirked when she saw the albino suffering. "Says the dumbass who wanted to prank his ex-crush" She rolled her eyes, taking a step away from the car. Gilbert grunted at the mention of his stupid idea. "Hey, at least give me credit for the idea!"

Lovina looked back at him. She gave him a considering look. Then she spoke. "Replacing vanilla ice-cream with mayonnaise? So, very original" She sarcastically remarked. She found it on a website somewhere. She thought it was a good idea until Marcello did it to her. The albino pouted. "Then give me credit for remembering it?"

She shook her head then continuing to walk down the wooden planks.

Roderich had planned for them to gather once in a while. Actually, it was Elizaveta but she wanted the Austrian to look good, she told them that it was his idea. Everyone except Elizaveta knew though. Last time was a gathering at the restaurant, which if Lovina remembered well, Gilbert had announced their relationship in front of everyone in the restaurant. She froze at that thought, a blush creeping up her face. The embarrassment that she tried to forget came back crawling.

This time, Roderich had a reserved the entire beach for them. He had invited other people too. _Damn that rich bastard_, the Italian cursed. She stopped at the railings that bordered the sandy beach and the parking lot. Gripping the railway, she stretched her arms until she heard a couple of snaps. She sighed contented at the feeling of relaxing her tensed muscles. Arthur had overworked her with different poses, Alfred had told her to finish her reports whereas Francis assigned her the waitress duty. Her feet were killing her.

Breathing in the fresh, salty air, she smiled. "My granddad usually brought us to the beach when we were kids" Gilbert said, coming closer to her. He was flapping the sleeves in front of him, expecting air to wash his face with a cool breeze. He went to her right, then leaned over the railing, arms dangling."_Verdammt,_I need shaved ice now!" He screamed like a child. All eyes looked at him with disapproving looks. The Italian chuckled bitterly, apologizing to the public for her 'boyfriend's' sudden outburst.

She elbowed him in the guts, making him choke. "You shouldn't act like a kid. You're like, what, close to 30?" She scowled at him. She dropped to the floor turning her back so that she was facing the parking lot. Pulling her knees to her chest, she blankly stared at the cars. "Feli used to scream about going to the beaches… Marcello wasn't born yet.." She murmured, expecting no one to answer. Gilbert crouched down next to her.

He brushed away the hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. "Hey, we're here to have fun. Not to have childhood memories!" He suddenly stood up, throwing his hands into the air. His jacket looked as if it was about to fall off, but he tightened them. He offered a hand to the Italian. Lovina reluctantly accepted it. The albino easily pulled her up—probably because of his Sport activities as a high school student. He was one of those renowned school athletes with a big personality that matched his quality in sports. He was just that good.

"Grazie…" She mumbled under her breath. She had realized the sudden slip. She hoped that the Prussian did not catch her but sadly, he did. "Hm? For what?" He asked. She drew in a breath. Too late to take it back, is it now? Even if she did, the albino would tell her otherwise. ".. For listening to Marcello the other day…" She had not realized that she was still holding his hand. She tightened her hand around him. Lacing her fingers with his, she leaned back against the railing, looking up to watch the clouds drifting by.

Gilbert looked at her blankly, letting her hold his hand, even if it was unconsciously done. "Yeah…I never got to go to one when I was a kid, though" He laughed softly at the end. The Italian looked at him surprised. She let go of his hand, then turned to him. Arms behind her back, she leaned closer. "What do you mean by you never went to a beach as a kid? Pretty sure every kid went to a beach at least once." She cocked an eyebrow at him, her lips forming a frown. If looks could kill, Gilbert would have died from an overload of cutesy.

"Well..West and I aren't related by blood. Only by the written law." Gilbert said, smiling sadly. He considered Ludwig as a blood brother. Ludwig admitted him as the same way. He unconsciously opened and closed his fist—something he probably tended to do when he was uncomfortable, Lovina noted. He was grateful that a cloud hid the sun, shadowing them underneath.

"How about I tell you a little story, _prinzessin_?" He looked at her. Eyes closed, lips forming a bittersweet smile. Curiosity got to her. She nodded. "It better be good. Everyone else is late, and we might be ditched by those assholes"

* * *

_"Gilbert! Come back here you ungrateful brat" The old lady shouted from the back of the house. In her hand, there was a cleaver that was probably covered by deer blood. It was supposedly sharp enough to chop a bone into two._

_Gilbert slapped his hands against his ears. He dipped his head in between his legs, begging for her to go away. His cuts were infected, turning into ugly colours each day. He did not plan or intended to get more._

_"Gil.. I don't want to be here" A younger blonde sobbed. He had snot on his face, and his eyes were red and puffy. Gilbert looked at him, then brought him into a hug. He let the younger one rest his head against the crook of his neck. He slowly rubbed small circles against the younger's back. "Shh, West. She'll be gone. I promise. Then we'll run. We'll run to that old man's place" He comforted the younger one even though his words might not be true._

_Ludwig clutched his hands onto Gilbert's soaked t-shirt. He smothered his face with it. As much as Gilbert found it disgusting, he could only grunt in disgust. "He pulled Ludwig away from him at arm's length. "West, that's gross. Look at you.. all messy an—" _

_He heard Ludwig scream. He felt himself being pulled at the back of his collar. He felt himself being pulled off from the ground and up into the air. Then he felt fear._

_"So, this was where you were. I'll have you know that if you do this one more time, your punishment is going to be a whole lot more worse than this" He felt the cleaver being pressed against him, then piercing through his skin. He screamed in agony and pain. But he also screamed for fear at what someone he had considered a 'brother' would see. His collar was released but his hair was pulled. He felt his hair ripping from his head. _

_"Stop it, please!" Gilbert screamed, kicking the lady with effort. Ludwig cried hard. Ludwig had run away. Ludwig had seen him suffer in front of him. Ludwig had seen what may be of him if he had misbehaved. Ludwig had seen what Gilbert had feared and wish that the blonde should never see in their life._

_As he was physically tormented by the lady, the old man he had mentioned earlier had arrived with Ludwig behind him. Gilbert was dropped to the floor, his back bleeding profusely. He curled into a small ball like an injured animal—because that was what he is. A small, fragile animal. He heard a loud slapping noise. Black spots appeared in his vision. It slowly clustered together, then forming a black space. His hearing grew deafer, his head felt light. He felt himself being scooped up. He winced when he felt fingers accidentally grazing against his wounds._

_Then he heard Ludwig begging for him to stay conscious and so was the old man._

* * *

"Bitch was then sent to the rehabilitation centre. They suspected that she was mentally unstable" He grimaced. The Italian scooted next to him, leaning against the railing with her ankles crossed. "We saw the old man as a grandfather. He saw us as the grandchildren he had lost along with his kids. Bitch was his neighbor, but he hated her with a passion. She treated the ones so-called 'took in' like shit," He spat in disgust.

"So that's what the scar on your back's about.." Lovina slipped out accidentally. But she would not take it back. She had wanted to ask about it ever since she saw it. Gilbert nodded. He wiped his hand across his forehead, wiping away the sweat that made him feel gross. He threw his hands up in frustration. "_Gott _better make me look hot when I'm sweating! This is not how I want to enjoy my day out.." He shouted then eventually groaned. He crouched, head hanging and his arms planked on his knees. Lovina looked at him in disapproval.

"I've got a question: Like me, does anyone else other know.. you know, other than the Potato Basta—" Before Lovina ended, she was cut off with a slap to her cheek. She palmed her cheek, easing the pain the seared. She turned to face Gilbert, intending to scold him for his outburst. But she did not. She could not. Gilbert growled, his brows furrowed and his crimson red eyes gleamed with anger. "Don't you fucking dare call him that!" Gilbert snapped at her. Her eyes widened, her body shaking in fear.

Tears were threatening to form, but she held them back. She pursed her lips, biting them on the inside. She could not snap back at him. One, because they were in public view. It would be bad to cause a commotion or a 'lovers' quarrel'. Two, because she has siblings. If someone were to call her sister and brother like that, of course she would get angry at them. They were her family after all. So she understood Gilbert's sudden action.

Gilbert eventually calmed down. He slapped his hand onto his forehead, groaning. "Great, now I have to get back to Stage 1 because I fucking messed up. So fucking awesome of you Gilbert. So fucking awesome." He lifted his hand. Lovina tapped her fingers on the red area. Her other hand lightly slapped Gilbert's face.

"What was that for?" He squeaked. Even though it could barely count as a slap, it technically is and practically pained a bit. Sort of. Maybe. Well, he had a soft spot for letting girls win. "You didn't stand your ground. Come on, you're a man. Besides, even I'll do that if someone says that about Feli or Cello!" She poked his chest with her forefinger. She lightly scowled, her curl bouncing as she moved.

He waved his hand in the air in a 'come over' gesture. "Yeah yeah. Wait, aren't those people them?" He asked, pointing towards the incoming group of people. Lovina looked at the direction, completely oblivious to his actual intention. "Dammit, the blonde trio are here too?" She clicked her tongue. She stormed off—actually, she was moving away from Francis—but a Hungarian, an Austrian, a Spaniard, and an American caught her and called her over. As soon as she was pulled into their group, Gilbert crouched , burying his head in his hands. His face grew hot and his mind was a mess. _Gott, she's cute_, he thought to himself.

* * *

"But Lovi!" Antonio whined, fingers pinching the Italian's sleeve. "I said no, bastard" She coldly stated. She glared at him with soulless eyes. He, on the other hand, gave her the look of a beaten puppy. Soon enough, she was no longer mad. She could not stay mad when Antonio had a puppy face. Neither could she stay mad with Feliciana, Marcello and her grandfather when they did that. Sadly for everyone else, it only worked on her when it came to them.

Gilbert tightened his grip on his tin can, slowly compressing the middle, then twisting it. He clenched his teeth while his eyes were watching the Spaniard and Italian. "Um, Gil? I think you'll bleed if you keep on doing that" Elizaveta tapped his shoulder. She carried a First Aid kit. Gilbert immediately released his grip on the tin can, then felt the pain after pressuring it against the tin can. "Fuck, that's painful" He winced. The tin was ripped in the middle, obviously the product of Gilbert's angry twisting. Elizaveta sighed then sat on the stool next to him. "She shook her head, carefully inspecting the cut. "Well, it's not deep at least. What made you so mad?" She asked absently, applying pressure to the cut, stopping it from bleeding. She then disinfected it with an alcohol swab. Gilbert hissed. "Why does it have to be something I love that I also hate?" The Hungarian slapped him on his shoulder. "Oh hush. Your fault. Now let me cover it up" She then wrapped a palm bandage, then tucking the leftover underneath an empty gap. "There, all done. Now do me a favour and don't do anything stupid, please?"

Lovina silently looked over. She frowned longer than she should. She had long stopped walking on the shore since Antonio would still be able to catch up with her. She crossed her arms across her chest. When she saw Elizaveta next to Gilbert, she felt a sudden pang of need. She felt like pulling Gilbert to her side or the second option, push Elizaveta away. She turned her back on them, so that she was facing the sea.

Antonio came next to her panting. His back arched, hands on his knees. "_Dios_, Lovi. When the hell did you get so fast?" Antonio asked in between pants. He had expected an insult from his dear Italian, but he received none, or at least, heard none. "Lovi?" His breathing was calmer and regular now. He tried to grab her by the shoulder but she slapped his hand away. "Don't touch me" She said before Antonio cupped her face, turning hers to face his. There were thin twin streaks of tears on her cheeks, while there were tears forming. She bit her lower lip. "Lovi, why are you crying?" He asked, wiping away her tears. Lovina shook her head slowly, muttering denials.

Antonio knew she was lying. There were other reasons that she could cry. One would be because sand got into her eyes, or the air was too salty for her. But he knew this one was probably none of the options. He placed her chin in between two fingers, then tilted her head upwards, making them look at each others' eyes. "Lovi, if you don't speak up, I might not be able to help you…" He asked worriedly. His usual cheery smile was replaced by a frown.

She shook her head, gently pushing away his hand. Lovina traced her cheek downwards, feeling the cold streaks. _Shit, I am crying_, she bit her lips. Wiping them away with the back of her hand, she felt hot tears threatening to form again. "Fuck.." She cursed softly. Antonio chuckled lightly. He grabbed her hand away from her face. He pressed into her palm with his thumb lightly. Then he rubbed his thumb over her palm in random motions.

"See? You were crying. Tell me what's wrong Lovi," He asked softly. Lovina glanced down at their intertwined hands. She remembered how much she loved it when Antonio laced his with hers. They were warm, comforting, and caring. Note, she used _were. _She no longer felt the warmth, need and comfort. Only care. But the sort of care that she would see as friends would. Friends? She had them. Only a few though. They were all outcasts like her. Then she realized that this was wrong. She remembered of the deal between the Prussian and the Spaniard.

Now that she rethought of it, Antonio could have put up more of a fight. He was too selfless. He cared more of his friends than the ones closer to him. She mentally frowned. Oh how she wanted to slap some sense into him, telling him that his advances after their break up was now useless. She felt close to nothing for him. Only frustration and disappointment. But she had to answer him.

"I did not." She lied defiantly. But Antonio was aware of that. That was her charm after all. Lying because of her own insecurities. "I know that, _mi amo_—" He mentally slapped himself for nearly completing his sentence. He had remembered that they had broke up. Hence, he has no right to call he that, does he?

"Don't call me that." She jerked her hand away from his. She gave him a glare, then growled at him. She used to love it when he called her that. Now only Antonio enjoyed how nice t sounded."Whoa, Lovi. No need to be so feisty. It was just a slip" He waved his hands in panic. The Italian relaxed for a moment, still glaring at him. She shifted a bit further from her previous spot, then eventually started strolling along the shore again. Antonio sighed deeply, running his hand in his hair. Then he began to run after her.

"Lovi, wait up! Why are you acting like this?" He asked her as he noticed that they were no longer near their spot, and he could not see their friends—or Lovina labels them as acquaintances. Unless his friends could see them, but he did not think that they would notice anyway. He heard her stop. He sighed again but with content. Then instead of running, he calmly walked to her.

The Italian turned to him. She was frowning. It was not the frown Antonio would have found 'Cute', but it was the sort of frown Antonio labeled as 'Caution: You messed up'.

"Why? You're asking me 'why'? Well, ask yourself! Why the hell are you so selfless!" Instead of a question, it seemed more of a statement. Antonio was taken aback. He was shocked by her again. "What do you mean by selfless?" He asked, suspicious of what she was yelling for.

"You think I wouldn't find out? Your goddamned deal with that damned friend of yours of course!" She yelled but not as loud as to others could hear them. This was their argument, not for others to involve. Antonio dared to step closer, then he grabbed her by the shoulders. "You knew?" He asked, but instead of the worried adrenaline, he sounded relieved.

"Of course I did." She grumbled.

As soon as he heard her, he pulled her closer, then wrapping his arms around her back tightly. "Great! Now you and I can be together again."

She looked at him quizzically. "What? I don't get you."

He rested his head on the crook of her neck. "It's pointless if you knew after all!" He said all too happily.

"No. I meant by why would I get together with you again?" She growled. It used to be poison for her to say that, now it was nothing more than an understatement. Antonio froze at the comment. He raised his head. "Now I'm the one who doesn't understand, Lovi."

She gently pushed him away from her, releasing his grip on her body. Lovina cupped his face with a firm grip. Antonio was baffled at the moment to say anything. "We've been together for 4 years! 4 years, Antonio. Yet all we ever do that was close to intimacy were cuddles and gentle kisses but nothing close to the next level. I'm fine with that though. I was afraid and insecure about that." She cast her eyes away. She was blushing as she admitted.

Antonio found it cute then a question popped into his mind. "Then why?"

Lovina looked at him again, this time, she was looking at him straight into the eye. "You're a man, Antonio. You loved me, and I loved you too. You're very charming, and your oblivious character is your main charm. You're selfless too. But that's why I said no."

"At first, you rejected the idea. But only the second time he asked, you offered. That's not what you're supposed to do as a lover. You're supposed to stand your ground for what you have. Yet you offered. That's stupid , Antonio. So very stupid. You're too selfless for your own good, and you're very likely to lose more."

"But that doesn't mean you can't break it off with Gilbert, does it?" Antonio protested. Unlike his usual cheerful self, he had more of a serious expression.

"And what if I told you that during those past few days, he had admitted already, and I, myself no longer feel it directed for you? That it was him who can make me stutter, flush, and impress me altogether like you used to be able to. As much as I hated him, opposites attract in time they're together. Maybe." She pressed her fingers into Antonio's cheeks. She moved them in smooth circular motions.

"But what if I can make you love me back? Is my love not enough, Lovi?"

"You can try, and yes, your love is enough. But have you forgotten about my baby brother ?"

Antonio shivered, then nodded. "Yeah…" He said. "..little bastard" He added quietly but Lovina caught his words. She pinched the Spaniard's cheeks hard. "I heard you. Don't call him that." Antonio hesitantly nodded.

"Unlike you, Marcello is surprisingly comfortable with Gilbert. Only on their encounter, had they _almost _fought. Other than that, do you know what he has that you don't?" She cheekily said with a grin. Antonio shook his head, releasing his face from Lovina's hands, then rubbing his cheeks with his palms.

"Confidence in actions." It was true, they both agreed. While Antonio was the cheerful one, he had also happened to be the one who had doubted whether his actions were right or wrong. So they were often delayed or cancelled. Francis had been the one who only did what he knew he could do. Gilbert? Gilbert was the one who thought he could do everything perfectly right. If he did not, he could act as if there were technical mistakes. That he could do it right. He had confidence in his actions, no doubts or second thoughts.

"So you're still going to be with him? What if he doesn't love you?" He asked as if he protested to the idea.

"Well, I said he admitted, right? If he doesn't, then I'll make him love me. I'll get the mafia to take care of it if it goes out of hand." She said, a smirk replacing her usual serious expression. She turned around, passing Antonio then walking back to what she labeled as acquaintances. Antonio sighed for the fifth time since he had arrived at the beach. He scratched his neck. "You and your mafia jokes… always getting what you want. There's nothing I could do to stop you, is there?"

"Maybe, if you tried hard enough. Hurry now, bastard or else your French friend would think the worst," She added.

* * *

"Aren't they just the cutest thing? Too bad that they broke it off" Elizaveta growled out in irritation. Gilbert rolled his eyes. _Says the person who was technically the reason_, he mentally thought. Antonio and Lovina were being questioned by their French friend who had suspected them of doing perverted things.

"You're saying it's my fault, bitch?" He asked. No. He stated. Because it was also his fault for their break up. Elizaveta nodded. She palmed her cheek. "Of course. It's so obvious that they love each other! I don't even think you love her for real." She said bitterly and dramatically. Gilbert mentally cursed at her but the heat creeping up to his face said something else.

"Or maybe you do.." She noticed his pale face was now turning into a tint of cream pink. "Oh, shut up." He said, taking a sip from his beer. How many tin cans of beer has he been drinking? He looked to his side. Twenty-one. He nodded to himself. Elizaveta poked his back with her finger.

"So, how do you feel about her?" If she could do one of Bella's—A Belgian friend of theirs—infamous Cheshire grin, she would have made it now. She teased him about it for a couple of times as he kept on shaking his head in rejection to avoid her question.

"Oh come on, Gilbert. We have to know if you actually love her or not!" She groaned.

"So, what? Do you want me to say sappy things about how much I need her or something like that?" He said disgustingly.

"Duh. How else do you confirm?" She rolled her eyes at him. She flicked his forehead hard. Gilbert yelped in pain. "The hell was that for?!"

She brushed him off. "Now, tell me how do you feel—honestly—about her character?"

"No."

"Yes."

"I am so not doing this."

"Oh yes you are totally doing this." She said mischievously. "Don't you have Mr. Glasses to bother?" He groaned. She shook her head. "Nah, he's reading. You're all that I can bother." She grinned. She rested her chin on the back of her hand. Gilbert's back was hurting him as he was sitting cross legged with his back slouching. He threw himself to the ground, his arms crossed under his head. Elizaveta cast her eyes on him, frowning. "You're going to get sand in my eye"

"Only you care" He retorted with a smirk. Elizaveta scowled. She pressed her foot on Gilbert's chest, pushing him deep in the sand. Gilbert choked. "Would you prefer to end up with a broken rib cage or would you prefer to speak?" She asked with a Cheshire grin. Gilbert gave her a glare but she did not give a care. "I would prefer to speak, Hungarian tomboy" He stuck out his tongue despite the pain that occurred in his chest.

"Since Roderich brought me to watch Les Miserables yesterday, I can't help but have the tune stuck in my head. So how about we have some literacy in speaking?" She winked at him playfully then lifted her foot. Gilbert exclaimed in relief, then shook his head. "Speak now, Gil. What thought have you had of her?" She gestured her arms in a waving manner.

Gilbert sat up from his lying position. He brought his knees to his chest. "Stop with that way of talking. It creeps me out."

"I said, speak." She gave him a glare that Gilbert dare not to question.

Making circles in the sand with a finger, he thought hard. "She's harsh, brash and definitely rude. Her mouth needs some soap. Man, her vocabulary's colourful," He said with sarcasm. He leaned back, hands supporting him. "The attitude of a stereotypical jock, the strength of a thug. Man, when did I thought will she be a friend."

"You're rhyming." Elizaveta noted. Gilbert shrugged her off.

"But the longer I'm with her, the more I see how I'm in need of her. Her curses are the charm, and so are her looks. She may frown but damn, she looks good. She's full of surprises, may I say. " He said with a close to sarcastic voice. He meant it as sarcasm but now he was not sure. "So poetic of you today" Elizaveta rolled her eyes, tying her hair. "Just let me have my say" Gilbert growled, purposely adding a rhyme.

He drew in a quick breath, collecting what he had thought of her for the past few days. "… Antonio was right. It was easy to love her. She is feisty and ill-mannered, but that's the point. A hard-to-get charm, you know? Bitch knows what's wrong and what's right. Knows what to correct and knows what to leave." His hand grabbed a handful of sand, then opening his the gaps between his fingers, the sand fell easily in between. " I get your point. So, was it since high school?" Elizaveta asked candidly.

The albino choked back a surprise. "W-What!" he stuttered. Then he collected himself. ".. She and Toni were dating then, remember? All I had was a tiny crush. Besides, I had another bigger crush on someone else. So it just grew when Toni broke it off" He mumbled but Elizaveta heard him. She nodded understandingly. "So, who's the bigger crush?" She asked, not aware of herself being the answer. Gilbert was reminded of her attention only for the Austrian. Of course she would not notice. He was but a mere nuisance to her and the Austrian pianist.

"Someone you know but it'll be better if you didn't know her" He grinned.

She kicked his back roughly. "Get back to your indirect confession!" She then took out a voice recorder, then turned it on, but the albino did not realize.

Gilbert cast his eyes above him. He looked at the clouds drifting, then shaping, then clustering together. He reached out his hand, closing and opening it as if he wished to catch the clouds. "Sometimes, I wonder if she could see the clouds the same way I could. Sometimes, I wonder if she liked risks like I do. And sometimes, I wonder if she loves action better than mere words of endearment. She makes my heart race, my mind a mess. So what does that make? A crush at best."

"You're weird, you know that?" The Hungarian furrowed her brows in a confusing manner. A lollipop stick was sticking out her mouth as she sucked on it.

"So I've been told." Gilbert remarked. Then he glanced back down and gazed over at where Francis was being stepped on by Lovina while Antonio tried to pull her off. The things she does never fails to surprise him.

* * *

Almost the entire afternoon, Gilbert had to stay under the beach umbrella while watching the others playing. Then when the sun was blocked by some drifting clouds, he would attack them on random occasions or join in. At one point, he kneed Antonio from behind, creating a domino effect that ended up with Elizaveta falling on top of Lovina.

As evening came, Gilbert sat near a beach boulder. The sun could not reach him that way. He laid his head against the side of the beach boulder, his legs stretched out. His gaze fell on the scene in front of him.

Streaks of red, orange, ochre, violet, fuchsia, and Prussian blue coloured up the sky. The sun was setting. It was no longer as high as it was as in the afternoon. The ocean waters reflected the sky, imitating, but mirroring the image. Grains of sand were no longer brown as when they were when the sun was still hanging in the picture earlier. They were dark, colours close to that of mahoganies.

Gilbert could make out the shapes of people leaving the beach as the day ended. The children, the adults, the teenagers, and the elders. He counted them as they go. His gaze would fall onto the younger children ever so often. He observed at how happy they were, thinking if that was how he and Ludwig would look like if they ever had the chance as children.

_So free, and spoilt, _he thought. He picked up a rock by his side, then hurling it into the sea. The rock just sank in right after it came into contact with the water. It plopped, and he acknowledged it. "You're so hard and durable, yet you're indulged by something so weak and barely solid" He grumbled. He kept throwing small stones and rocks, pebbles if he could. He had barely registered it when Lovina walked up to him.

"You know, there are some fish living down there. It could injure or shock them, dumbass" She scolded. A shocked Gilbert flailed the pebble in his hand. It landed on the shore unceremoniously dull. He grunted. "What are you doing here? I thought you were with Tonio." He sounded as if he was cursing the Spaniard's very existence, but he managed.

"Oh come on. You were with Liz! Besides, everyone's heading back when they gave up looking for you. Why the fuck are you even here anyway?" She asked, gesturing her hand to the area. Barren, empty and only them. What sort of good thing is here anyway? She would think.

"Because everyone else gets to be spoilt while Ludwig and I were only educated throughout our schooling days. Holidays meant nothing but torture to us when we lived with the hag" He trailed. He grimaced when he thought of her. The woman deserved life sentence in prison, but they let her go with a permit when she lied about that she was mentally ill. It was a bluff. A big fat bluff. He knows it. She always does that when his adoptive grandfather questioned her suspiciously.

Lovina slapped his head. He yelped in pain. "The hell did you do that for?!" he screamed at her. He would need to thank the sun for giving him sunburn because he was embarrassed to be hit by a girl. "You're being miserable when you have a magnificent and gorgeous view right n front of you! That's supposed to be my question," She crossed her arms and looked at him defiantly. Gilbert stared at her for awhile, then cast down his eyes to his own hands.

"Because I don't like red. No, I loathe it." He murmured.

Lovina looked at him, surprised. "You don't like red?" She said with pure curiosity.

Gilbert shifted his position. He brought his knees to his chest, and rested his chin on the back of his hands. "Because they're why the bitch loathed me. She practices the old culture. She saw me as the devil's child." He snarled. His hand gripped onto his kneecaps, threatening to dig the nails into his skin. The skin area turned red on the pressure.

"Then why would she hate the Pot—I mean, your brother?" Lovina asked, correcting her slip up. Gilbert was just about to snap at her but decided not to as she corrected herself. Maybe she knew what to avoid after all.

"He reminded her of her old lover. She would cry at night about how he abandoned her for another prettier lady. West was like the reincarnation of him." Gilbert murmured, almost inaudible. He patted on the area next to me. "Sit."

The Italian reluctantly sat, suspicious of anything that the albino could do to her. When she did, she expected something like being pushed to her side. Instead, she had had none of what she expected. The albino was surprisingly quiet. Gilbert let his mind wander. There were still some people left but none of which were their friends. They had left, he guessed.

He subconsciously bit his nail. "Don't do that!" Lovina slapped his hand. Gilbert winced. "You should seriously stop slapping people, you know that?" He told her, flailing his hand as if to ease the pain. She stuck out her tongue at him. She folded her legs, then wrapped her arms around them, bringing her knees close. Gilbert dropped down to the sand, exclaiming contented. He folded his arms beneath his head, a leg across the other.

He breathed in, sniffing the salted air. Fresh and natural. He smiled to himself, gazing at the reddish orange clouds drifting by. He imagined them shaping into different sorts of shapes. One of them looked like a pug to him. He laughed by himself.

"What's so funny?" Lovina asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Nothing. Why are you here, anyway?" He asked, reminded that Lovina had come here by herself and not under instructions. He sat up, placing his sand-covered hand on his knees. He stretched himself until he heard a couple of cracks.

"I wanted to ask you a question.." She murmured. The Italian glanced down, eyes no longer watching the colour changing sea.

"Well, that's new. Shoot the question, _prinzessin_." He told her with excitement. She rarely asked, if he knew better. From experience, she was independent. Only looking for the questions by herself with no one's help. That was what made him, Antonio and Francis attracted to bother her back when they were in school. That differed and made her better than her ever so dependent sister.

The Italian drew in a quick breath. She subconsciously grabbed hold of a thin stick. She slowly drew a circle, then random lines that crisscrossed the circle. "Why not Feli?" She faintly asked. She still felt inferior to her sister.

"For what?" Gilbert did not understand. Of course he would not. He never felt inferior all his life because he was devoted to making Ludwig's life better. If Ludwig was happier than he is, then so be it.

"You said I was second after Liz.. But why not Feli?" She asked again, almost inaudible because she doubted her voice and question. It seemed silly to ask but it just happened to slip.

Gilbert chuckled lightly. "You're funny, you know that?" He gently grabbed he chin, turning her head to face him. He smiled gently. The red of the sky were nothing compared to the red of his eyes. His pale skin still were contrasting strongly against the setting sun.

"Because everyone needs to be equal. Feli has more than you. Heck, I think me, Franny and Toni altogether still wouldn't match up! You're also independent, unlike your sister. You were only so when you see something you like but you can't have." He said softly.

"Not true." Lovina protested.

"True. Next, your sister's a chatterbox and can never seem to get on someone's bad side. She's too perfect. I hate perfection. They make others worthless. You on the other hand, made imperfection perfect. Do you understand now?" He grabbed a lock of her hair, then kissed it.

"Stop being so cheesy, goddamit!" Lovina exclaimed angrily with tone of content. She jerked away from him. The albino laughed, then grabbed her hand. "Come on! I think your brother may be plotting ways to kill me since you're still out this late" He said with a genuine tone of worry. He led her to the car, then pushed her in. He got into his own seat, then turned the ignition. He sped away then stopped midway before he realized he was not wearing any seat belts and there were polices up ahead.

"Should have done so earlier" Lovina cooed. She smirked at his carelessness.

"Well, you could've told me!" He retorted. He hastily put on his seat belt, then casually drove past the police without getting pulled over.

Had they not realize it, they were not looking at each other the whole way back to Lovina's house and both of their free hands were grabbing onto something like the cushion to avoid the need of touch.

* * *

A/N: Apparently, I had some free time during Gawai to write this at night. So close to 7K adn probably the longest chapter! And I did not know that 'casted' is wrong and that 'cast' is still 'cast' for the past tense until I checked Google before I decided to upload this.

Anyway, school starts next week, so yeah, I might not update regularly like last time. And to compensate for the horrible previous chapter that was written half-hearted but for the plot, this one here is longer and had a bit more plot. Actually, anybody remembers about Gilbert's scar back in the earlier chapters? You know, the one with Gilbert having hangover. Yeah, that one. So I decided to put it in here since he wanted to take a swim.

Gilbert's albino, so he's very sensitive to sunlight. I also wanted to write about how Lovi would tell Tonio that she knew, then Gilbert telling Elizaveta indirectly that he no longer liked her in a sense. So it's like killing three birds with a stone. No, wait. Make it four birds with a stone because I also wanted for Lovi and Gil to indirectly tell their feelings for each other.

So yeah, four birds with a stone. Reviews, follows and favourites are like love~


	10. Chapter 10

A quarrel between the two teams broke out on the field. Both had members screaming and shouting accusations at each other. Some were throwing punches and kicking shins.

"Hey, quit fighting!" Gilbert shouted in anger. He blew the whistled hard, deafening the ears of his students. He stepped in between the two teams, pushing both of them apart from each other. "Tell me what's this about!" He growled. His students murmured among themselves, claiming their innocence in the fight.

Gilbert looked at them with a frown. "This was not how I taught you sportsmanship! There is no way you can be an awesome sports star like this. Where did all your morale on the field go?" He asked his students furiously. Some of the students were casting their eyes to their feet, muttering apologies.

Two students, however, immediately pointed fingers at each other. "He started it! He said that I was better as a midfielder!" He accused the other. The other however, nodded in agreement. Gilbert tilted his head in confusion. The other kid had accused of him of doing something that sounded a little bit too mean, yet unlike any other children would do, he did not deny.

"Why did you do that?" Gilbert sternly asked, not forgetting his duties as a teacher. He was confused but his priorities are first. To educate and discipline a student before letting them do their tasks on their own. The student did not back down though.

"Because he really should be an attacking midfielder, not the centre forward!" The student said with no hesitation. "See! He's saying that I'm bad at being in the forward!" The other child whined. Gilbert sighed inwardly. He scratched the back of his neck, wondering what to do. Then he realized that might as well let the kid be right.

"Actually, Samuel… I think John is right." Gilbert said, looking at the supposed Samuel with an awkward eye contact. "What! How can you not consider? I mean, I'm good as a centre forward right? I'm not bad right?" Samuel sounded arrogant at first, but then was reduced to a whimper. "R-Right, Mr. Beilschmidt?" He asked with sad eyes.

"Samuel, I mean it," Gilbert crouched down to meet their height. He brought both the boys to him as the other boys were going to the W.C. to wash up. "John's right, okay?" Gilbert said comforting Samuel. He ran his hand through Samuel's blond hair as the other hand grabbed John's wrist.

Samuel started sobbing but he wiped the tears away. He had really loved to be a centre forward, Gilbert thought. How was he supposed to tell the blond kid that he was better off as an attacking midfielder. "But I like scoring the goals!" Samuel protested in between whines.

"Maybe because Mr. Beilschmidt here thinks you have excellent technical ability, understanding of the winger role and also, you might have better off-the-ball knowledge, isn't that so, Gilbert?" A familiar voice said.

"It's the pretty miss! Hi!" The students who came back from the W.C. ran crowding around her. "Lovina?" Gilbert turned his head to look at her. She placed a hand on her hips. "No, I'm Feliciana, dumbass." She said sarcastically. Some of the students scolded her for her vocabulary but they did not seem to mind her language much.

"Okay, okay. Wait, how did you get here?" He asked, almost forgetting Samuel and John. Samuel was trying to accept the fact about his change of role on the field. Thankfully with Lovina's interruption, he was able to accept it little by little. "Does that mean I have to change on-the-spot?" Samuel asked, tugging Gilbert's jacket and bringing the albino back to his reality.

Gilbert shook his head. "We'll start slowly. You'll have to get used to the tactics as a midfielder. You," The Prussian said with a bit of annoyance . He gripped John's wrist then sighed. "Try not to make it sound as if he has no skills and forcing him to take a role he didn't want." Gilbert said, sighing as he ended. John muttered a 'sorry' while Samuel nodded. "Now, go." The albino said as he gently pushed them back to the field.

The group of students around Lovina went back to the field after Gilbert blew the whistle, ordering them to start practicing.

"Well, that's a change of perspective. Didn't think you were good with kids." Lovina said as she leaned against the wall of the equipment storage room. "Didn't think kids would love you either" Gilbert retorted.

He stood up, squaring his shoulders. He stretched, then noticing a flaw of one of his students. "Don't weave through other players! Just kick the ball and let other players take it! You, kick it back right before the opponent snatches it, got it?" He shouted. His students shouted back a 'yes'.

"Anyway, how did and why are you here?" He asked with his back facing her. He was too focused on his team. "Well, I borrowed Alfred's car. My own car that you rarely see nowadays was wrecked by Marcello waaaaaay too much." Lovina said with a grunt and disappointment. It was her car. Not Nonno's. Her own car bought using her own paycheck.

"You still haven't told me why you're here." He asked, again with his back facing her. A pen was clipped onto the clipboard and a hand was prepared to grab the whistle, ready to blow at any sudden flaw.

"Alfred sent me here to get some samples from the school soil for a survey that might end up as a research. We have the school authorization if you must know." She said, carefully picking her words.

Gilbert did not reply. She stood there watching him. Because it was close to evening, there was a black silhouette instead of the actual being.

_He looks so distant…_ She thought to herself. She slapped herself, claiming that she should not be concerned of the albino. But he was not distant from attention, she knew. It was more like she was so much distant than he was in terms of understanding.

He knew what she was trying to do. He understood her. He is the kind of person that knows you want to tell them but have your mouth clamped shut, yet he forced you to spill it out, let you cry, and he will comfort you. But she does not know what to do when it comes to him doing all those. Keeping quiet, focused and determined in a very serious way. It was unnatural to her.

"So, I saw you talking to Tonio yesterday. What were you guys chatting about?" Gilbert asked.

"Nothing much. Just that I told him that I knew. What about you? You were with Liz for all I know" She responded, but her few last words were but a mere mutter.

"Hm? Oh, we were just chatting about the usual life thi—Oh hey, time's up." He said nonchalantly, hearing the beeping of his watch, then checking it to notify himself that practice was over. "Yo brats! Practice over. Wash up and clean up!" He hollered at them. The students nodded, stopping to pick up the footballs and bright orange cones to return them back to the equipment room.

"By the way, the kids sound like they know you." Gilbert finally turned to face her. She sighed gladly, agitated. To her, not facing a person when talking to them is very rude. Even she herself knew that. "Yeah, they do. I come here once in a month to check for the soil samples. Eventually, the kids wanted to know me so now they do." She sighed, shoulders slumping.

"Oh. Okay."

"Ooh, Mr. Beilschmidt. Is this the girl you keep on telling us about?" A girl cheekily asked. "What!" Lovina and Gilbert shrieked in unison. Other kids took notice. They hurriedly rushed over to check what was the commotion about. Eventually, they began teasing Gilbert. Lovina smiled. She was not used to getting attention. It was nice for once as she was used to being ignored.

"She does have long brown hair and is bit of a tomboy the last time I saw her. But your eyes aren't green." A boy pointed out. That made Lovina realize that Gilbert was not talking about her. He was talking about Elizaveta. "O..Oh. About that.." Gilbert said, noticing the awkward tension around her.

"Then, that means he doesn't want to make it easy for us to find the girl!" A girl exclaimed. The others nodded.

"Excuse me, what?" The Italian asked, confused.

"Well, actually, we were planning to find whoever the girl is and get him together with her. We did find one that had green eyes, but she was with another guy. So we cancelled her out. Didn't think it was you though, pretty miss! You really are pretty, so I guess he had a knack for girls" Samuel said out of the blue.

She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. She knew that it was actually wrong. But she did not want to crush their hopes, so she got along with it. "You caught us." She said with a light laugh, earning a blank face and reaction from the albino.

"Well, anyway, get back home. Your moms and dads are probably worried by the way" Gilbert said, shooing them all. They all whined, some cooed, the others were encouraging him to bring the Italian out for a date. Seriously, what is it with kids nowadays?

"Sorry" Gilbert apologized, rubbing the back of his neck as the students were running back home. They were waiting at their respective vehicles. Lovina turned on the ignition of Alfred's car, planning to give the samples to Alfred on the way back to her house.

"For what?" She asked, poking her head out of the window. "It was awkward, wasn't it?" Gilbert sheepishly said.

"Yeah.. But hey, at least they know that even a narcissistic asshole like you could find a girl. Hell, even I didn't think you could get a girl for someone as arrogant as you" She said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, but that girl is you." The albino retorted, buckling his seat belt. He heard Lovina scoff as both their windows were rolled down. What more was that Lovina just had to park next to his car.

"Shut up"

"I will, _prinzessin._ Though, how about a date tomorrow? It's a day off and also a weekend. To make up for the 12 days we didn't see each other after the third day of the trial and also the unexpected Elizaveta-in-the-awkward-conversation thing" He winked at her. He earned an 'are you serious?' face. "Sure, why not?" He said, hands on the wheels.

"Yeah, yeah.. Wait, how many days had it been actually. I lost count." She had just realized. She started counting the days but she gave up after she remembered the few days they haven't seen each other.

"Guess you enjoy being in my awesome presence then, huh?" He had a smug. She clicked her tongue. "Don't count on it. You better have a hell lot of cash tomorrow." She said, flipping her hair. "Sure, sure. Just dress your best and please dress as awesome as I will."

"How should I know what you're going to wear?" She asked, fingers tapping on the steering wheel. "Intuition then." He said, cocking his eyebrow at her.

"Yeah right..Anyway, I'm heading back to the Research Centre. See ya' tomorrow, narcissistic asshole." She waved him off. "See ya' too, _mein prinzessin!_" He shouted back at her, driving off in the other direction.

Lovina smiled to herself, her window screen blinded by the bright white lights of other cars in front of her.

_Maybe I am enjoying not counting the trial days._

* * *

A/N: Okay, sorry for the lateness! First of all, I was offered a spot on the Debate team but I declined the offer. Second, I was trying to figure out how to wrap this up. So it's short because that's the only thing I could do that's simple. I like how it ended up 'cause it's simple and short. Third, I was busy because of the Homestuck update. Fourth, Hetalia Season 5 ended. Of course I had a marathon. Fifth, I had this essay writing competition and ended up with a good 5 pages essay.

Anyway, it was worth the absence because I got second place in my class for the exams. In any case should you want to know about the story being updated or is currently being written, I tell using either Twitter or tumblr.

My twitter is DatItalianPride ( Chocolate Muggle) and my tumblr. Is lovino-s-dick. Very inappropriate, I know. But hey, I love Lovi, okay?

Reviews, favourites and follows are like love and will cheer up my day.


	11. Chapter 11

Gilbert had just realized that throughout all of their rendezvous, they had been going to places that they both had been to before.

How had he realized that?

Well, he had asked Ludwig for places the German would recommend for a sappy romantic dates. That was when Ludwig pointed out that they had been going to places they had been to before and that meant almost all over the town (Ludwig knew because Gilbert couldn't shut up about his day with his Lovina).

He waltzed into a flower shop that had a banner with 'Herdevary Flowers' written on it. He rapped onto the counter. "Yo, Mrs. Herdevary. Got a minute?" He called as he noticed that the front part of the shop was empty. "Yes, dear. Hold on a minute." Came the reply.

Out came a lady who had lines etched onto her forehead, skin wrinkled and speckled, graying hair, and her eyes sunken into her skull. "Oh, it's you, Gilbert. What can I do for you today?" She politely asked him. Gilbert studied her for a while. This was Elizaveta's grandmother. She was one of those people whom Gilbert enjoyed being with without being noisy and loud and obnoxious.

"Ah well, I'm not good at the language of flowers" Gilbert made a gesture when he mentioned 'language'. She chuckled at him. "And I have this girl who I promised to have a date with today. She's Italian and she's pretty fussy." He said, pink dusting his cheeks. He cleared his throat.

"I see. So you want the flowers to be romantic or simply for a gift that shows you how much she means to you?" She asked him, already going over her bible of flowers. "I thought they were the same thing" The albino said. She shook her head. "And this is why Lizzy doesn't even pay attention to you, my dear." She teased. "I thought we were past that!" He screamed back in embarrassment.

"They're not the same, okay? Anyway, you seem pretty fussed up about this girl. I heard from Lizzie how you act so affectionate towards her and how you pay attention to her ever since high school. It's really ridiculously when she told me that she had a trial date with your friend for about 5 years then actually dating years for 4, and you were acting all tough. It was sad to know that my granddaughter is so stupid and oblivious to not notice that you were after her." She wiped a fake tear. Gilbert rolled his eyes.

She closed the book with a loud thud that made Gilbert jump. The book was thick, so what should be expected when it's closed is that it would make a loud thud of course. "Yeah, yeah. But could you hurry up a bit? I bet Lovi's checking her wristwatch right now, calling me a bastard for being late if I am," Gilbert sighed. The Italian was renowned for being precise about time.

"Oh okay. How about you get primroses, honeysuckles, and roses of Sharon? You don't need to understand the meaning though. I'm pretty sure she knows that you don't know , so you asked the florist to pick it. I heard it from Lizzie," She teased. Gilbert shrugged. He walked over to the racks where the flowers were arranged accordingly. He picked up some according to a ratio. He could not help but be precise and make sure they are of clumps of equal size yet make it look attractive.

He passed them to the florist, then she wrapped them in a very attractive wrapping paper with laced rims. She tied it with a thin ribbon, then expanded the top part to make the flowers look puffy and spread out. "Here you go. It's $15 because of connections." She winked at him. Gilbert thanked her. "_Auf wiedersehen_. Hope ya' have a good day, gran!" He said as he walked out the door.

He felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He picked it up, cradling it in the junction between his collarbone and neck. "Hello?" He simple said.

_"Where the fuck are you? I've been waiting for about 25 minutes! Do you have any idea how stupid I look like, standing in the crowd like a misfit. I don't even know why you chose this place!" _Her scolding was too loud for him, so he pulled his phone an arm's reach from his ear. "Chill. I was stopping by a flower shop. I'm almost there." He calmly said. He played with the bouquet in his hand.

He was almost there. The square, he decided. There were coffee shops around the area, as well as shopping complexes. A pure business and entertainment spot for people with money to spend. That was where he parked his car. He figured that Alfred probably offered to take her there since she had a shift earlier, and the American had overheard them.

He spotted Lovina from a far, but it was only her back. He knew though. She was the only one who was standing still in the middle of a busy crowd. He crept from behind, then wrapped his arms around her waist then lifted her off the ground, surprising her. "What the fuck! Let go of me!" She shrieked. He let go of her, dropping her to the ground.

"Here you go. For you, _mein prinzessin_~" He smiled at her, shoving the bouquet of flowers in front of her face. She stared at it wide-eyed, then registered the gesture. Pink was dusting her cheeks. She cast her eyes at the flowers, then slowly took the bouquet into her hands. "_Grazie,_" She mumbled softly.

"Anything for the lady" He tossed her a wink, then looped his arm with hers, dragging her to his car. "So I was right. Alfred did send you here, didn't he?" He grinned. The Italian nudged him with her elbow. "He was too nosy for a boss,"

He opened the passenger's door. "Che. I can do that myself you know?" She frowned. She had her pride and did not want to look like the hopeless lover who expects their partner to obey their every command. In any case, he ushered her in much to her reluctance.

"I know." He flashed a smile at her as she rolled her eyes. As soon as the car was turned on, they sped off, hoping to go before the lights turn red. They successfully did so.

"So, where are we heading?" Lovina asked him, noticing that they were no longer on a recognizable route. "Exactly. Where are we heading? I don't know, either." He grinned, eyes focusing on the road as he was pumped up with adrenaline.

"What! How could you go somewhere without knowing it? Stop and turn around right now!" She complained. "Oh shush. That's the fun of it. You don't know what's waiting out there. Maybe we could find something interesting,"

She looked at him with disbelief. But honestly, she herself wanted that adrenaline, and of course, curiosity crept to her mind. "But I mean it, Gilbert. It's dangerous if you don't know what's going to be appearing." But oh hell no is she going to let it show.

Gilbert rolled his eyes at her. "Oh please, just because you used my full name, doesn't mean you're actually serious. You're just taunting me. I know that you're as curious as I am," He said in a sing song voice. For a moment, he went off road. He received a punch to the arm when he got back on track.

"Ugh, fine. I'm tired of fighting anyway." She rubbed her temples. She just had a fight earlier with Feliciana when her sister was bothering her about her date with Gilbert. _It's not even a date_, she glumly thought.

"Okay, so since we have nothing we know here, let's play 20 questions!" Gilbert exclaimed as he took a random turn that led to a deep forestry. She looked at him with disbelief again. "Seriously? 20 questions? Are you a kid?" She snickered.

"Hey, at least it's better than having to watch only the scenery" He made a quotation mark gesture even though he's hands were gripped tightly onto the steering wheel. Lovina slumped back into her seat. "Fine. You start first." She crossed her arms across her chest.

He thought hard. Then he figured that he never understood why Lovina would take an interest into Science, since she was all over Arts back during school years. "Why did you take the Science field?"

"Because if I can't gain the favour of people through Arts and have them fawn over me while my sister is able to do all that, then I can gain their favour in the field that requires logic. I won't mope around and sulk just because she has more attention than I did. If I had the time, then it means that I had the time to revise my knowledge and expand them. That way, we can be like the brain. One creative, the other logic. We're twins after all, so why not be opposites? Besides, the more I studied, the more curious I got." She said with a shrug. Gilbert had not expected her to say that.

Apparently, he also never expected for her to actually thought about all that.

"Now, it's my turn. If I recall, you wanted to be a navy officer. So why are you in the teaching profession?" She asked with genuine curiosity. He shrugged. "I guess it's because my passion for sports is stronger than my passion for the sea. Besides, being a teacher is awesome because you get to play with the brats and not get expelled from school just because you pulled a prank on another teacher!" He grinned.

She rolled her eyes. Of course, why wouldn't he stop pulling pranks on people?

"Next question, favourite colours and why?"

"Technically, those are two questions. But hey, it means that I'll have to answer less" Lovina shrugged. "Red, and green." She said with no hesitance. Gilbert hummed an approval. "Why is because that red is the colour of passion and green reminds me of my plants back when _mia nonno_ was still healthy to teach us how to plant."

"I thought it was because it reminds you of a tomato. OH hey, look! A lake and it's pretty." Gilbert exclaimed when he saw a hint of clear blue water in a natural landscape. He completely ignored the fact that he had mentioned the word 'pretty', but he did not seem to correct it. Lovina on the other hand snickered at the sue of the word. She had not expected for him to use that.

Either way, she leaned forward, grasping a look of it. Sure enough, it was beautiful. But would she tell him that? No.

"Yeah? Well, every lake in Alaska is fucking beautiful." She said as a dust of pink crept up her cheeks. Gilbert shook his head when he turned to look at her. He cocked an eyebrow, and his lips twisted into a curl at one end. "You don't understand, do you?"

She looked at him puzzled. "What is it that I don't understand?" She challenged him. He snickered for a moment before turning his attention back to the road. She looked at him with expectation. "Wha—"

That was when Gilbert swerved the Porsche Carrera GT at a corner then pulled the brake. Lovina who was surprised and panicking at the moment drew in a shuddering breath. "The fuck was that for!" She had shouted at him louder than intended.

The albino shrugged. "Dunno, but how about we take the chance to go on a _beautiful _date since we have this _gorgeous_ landscape, and that you just have an _awesome _boyfriend." He offered her his hand. "You're still on trial, dumbass. But the offer is considerable. Take me away then." She accepted his hand. When she did, Gilbert thought that she would follow his steps. Instead, she pulled his hand as he walked away, bringing him to the ground.

"What the hell! Why did you do that? So not awesome!" He whined. She looked at him in distaste. "Do you think I would let you go off the hook just because you fucking showed me the landscape? Nope. I'll never forget the panic moment you made me suffer. Remember that Beilschmidt." She strutted over him. Gilbert rolled his eyes, then got up by supporting himself with his hands.

When they did reach the lake though, they studied the landscape and their surroundings. Lush green forestry with blots of obvious purple, red, and pink. Dragonflies flying across the water, and a flock of small birds soaring above them. They could see a family of rabbits feeding themselves with the grass. Gilbert cooed at their adorable features and motion while Lovina was silently appreciating everything.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Gilbert said in a calm voice. They were now sitting on the grass close to the lake. Lovina nodded. "Come on. Why are you so quiet? I haven't heard you say anything good about this place we found!"

The Italian remained silent. Honestly, she did not know what to say. Gilbert saw the twinkle of excitement in her eyes. Then he thought of a good idea. "Hey Lov, you always bring an extra set of clothes, _ja_?" She nodded. Of course she does. She works with a fashion photographer, and is presented with clothes she could have after each shoot was taken.

"Bastard, what are you—Ah!" She screamed as Gilbert pushed her into the lake. Thankfully, they were at the bank, so it was not deep. But still, she was soaked wet. "Why you little piece of shit, I swear I will castrate you with a rusted spoon and feed you to my cats!" She threatened but that was right before Gilbert thought that it was a good idea to jump in.

When Gilbert jumped in, water splashed around her, making her even more wet as in, she was literally soaked and it would take hours to dry herself if she did not bring along a thick towel. The albino popped out of the water shivering. "Well that was a bad idea!" He rubbed his arms in attempt to heat himself.

"You think!" She screamed back, twisting her locks of hair to squeeze out the water. But actually, she appreciated the push. Soon enough, they adapted to the temperature of the water.

"Here!" The albino said as he threw a handful of water to the Italian. Lovina moved a bit to her right, only getting splashed by little drops of them. "You're never going to beat me in that! You should do better than that!" She shoved her hands into the water to splash a wave at Gilbert.

Gilbert was again soaked wet. "Aw, now I have to wait until my hair's dry again!"

"Serves you right. Come on, we should head back. I promised Feli that I would take her out to shop in the evening."

"She can't drive?"

Lovina shook her head. "Too bad." Gilbert pouted. He wanted to play more. They both got out of the lake, then changed. Gilbert went to a side of the lake while Lovina took the other. One is because they're both self-conscious. Two, they don't actually care about their gender difference but if someone were to arrive unexpectedly, well, it would cause some misunderstanding.

The ride back was of nothing but of their comments on what they did back in the lake. "You should have seen the look on your face when I had you!" Lovina snickered.

Gilbert stuck out his tongue. "Yeah? Well, you should have noticed how obvious your bra was,"

"Oh you crossed the line now!"

That was technically what their conversation was throughout the ride.

Eventually, they arrived at Lovina's house. "Exactly as I remembered it." Gilbert sighed. Lovina unlocked her door, stepping outside to be greeted by the hot afternoon sun.

"Dumbass, you were just here yesterday." The Italian smiled cockily at him then punched his arm lightly. "Thanks for the ride… and the date." She mumbled, casting her eyes away. Her cheeks felt warm. Her heart felt warm and content. _Have I felt this way before with Antonio? I don't remember._

"Sure thing, _prinzessin_. Bye and stay awesome till the next time!" He said, waving her off. With that, he sped off, probably back to Roderich's house to annoy the Austrian.

Seriously, Lovina shook her head in amusement. She could feel the end of her lip curl up. Was this how it was? Feeling warm and content? No amusement. Just content and peace? Comfortable peace where you don't feel conscious about anything? She never felt any of these while with Antonio.

_Maybe. Just maybe, I'm enjoying him._She smiled to herself as she acknowledged her feelings. _Thank goodness I'm not as complicated as before._ She thought as she twirled the bouquet that was forgotten for a moment. _Just a simple maybe._

* * *

__A/N: Okay. I apologize for the late update and the crappy chapter. I didn't have much writing time as my grandfather was admitted to the hospital and our family took turns to take care of him. My twin,cousin, and I were taking care of him most of the time. Same goes for the whole of tomorrow. And also, I like mature Lovina. I like how I can see her trying to make things work for herself. How to make herself equal to her sister in a way she would gradually enjoy as well. That's why I took the Science field for her.

In any case, as usual, reviews, follows, and favourites are like love for me. And also, I have a tumblr. account that's active. It's lovino-s-dick. Inappropriate? I know. I recently did a Twitter account, so it's pretty empty except for some retweets. It's DatItalianPride. Do follow me though. But seriously, hit the follow, favourite and review button.


	12. Chapter 12

Glasses knocked lightly against each other, people chatting in the background, the jukebox playing 'Sweet Dreams'.

Gilbert took a sip out of the glass he had. He licked his lips, tasting the martini that left an aftertaste. He tapped the counter, requesting for more. The bartender nodded, taking away his glass and refilling it with the same fluid. Gilbert thought for a while, then decided he didn't want any more alcohol, so he changed his request. The bartender understood. Nobody would want to come home reeking of alcohol, wouldn't they?

"Hey, Gil!" A familiar voice grabbed the attention of both him and the bartender. He didn't need to turn to know who it was, but out of habit, he swiveled his seat. He waved his hand, ushering the other to come over. "'Ey, Alfred." The albino greeted.

Alfred plopped down onto the seat next to Gilbert, his body limping against the counter. "The usual, sir?" The bartender asked politely. "Nah, I just want some Coke, if that's alright." Alfred sighed, propping his folded arms onto the counter. "Certainly, sir." The bartender nodded as he took the order then going back to his work.

The albino nudged Alfred with his elbow, prompting the other to bring his attention to him. "So, why the beat up state? Brit's got your pants?" Gilbert teased as he took a sip from his glass. Alfred blushed while he shook his head. "N-No! I'm just tired, that's all!" Alfred waved his arms in front of him hysterically, protesting the idea.

Gilbert snorted but did not pry on further. He was too lazy to busy himself with others. "You know… you're pretty fucked up." He heard Alfred groan tiredly. Gilbert cocked his eyebrow, glancing sidelong at him. He placed down his glass as soon as the bartender returned with Alfred's Coke.

"Watcha' mean?" The albino choked a bit at the burning sensation in his throat. He cringed at the bitter taste that lingered on his tongue. "Well, nobody just goes up to Lovi like that! Especially if she's that moody." Alfred straightened himself as he adjusted his seat. Alfred loosened his tie, took off his jacket and unbuttoned his collar. He sighed in relief.

"I don't get how that's fucked up but I think messing around with Antonio's fucked up." Gilbert grimaced as he recalled how Antonio reacted when he told him so a probable month ago. The American hummed along the tune of the 'Sweet Dreams' with a smile plastered on his face. He swung his leg back and forth like a child, with his hands grabbing onto the stool. The bartender sneered at him but he did not care.

"Oi, stop being childish." Gilbert frowned but could not help smiling as he saw the displeased look on the bartender. Alfred pouted. He rested his chin on the palm of his hand, making a childlike face. "Aww, does Gilly have no happy high school times with the hero?" He teased, then yawned.

"Tired?" Gilbert snorted. Alfred nodded absently. Soon enough, the American dropped his head on top of the counter with a firm thud. Gilbert jumped, shocked at the sudden impact. The albino poked Alfred once, then twice, then thrice. After a while, he heard a gentle snore.

"What the actual fuck!? So not awesome ,man." He shook the blond furiously, getting the attention of everyone around them. "Alfred, why the hell are you sleeping in a bar?" He asked him aloud, hoping that it would wake the American. "Mphhh..Shut up, I'm tired."Alfred said contentedly in between snores as if he was dreaming about it. Gilbert looked at him with a look that fully states 'I'm so done with you'.

Alfred accidentally turned in his seat, dropping himself to the floor with a firm thud. "Fuck, that hurts." He whined, propping himself up before anyone turned their attention to him. "Serves you right. Anyway, why are you even here? Thought you had some work to do." The albino picked up his glass and played it between his two fingers, absently interested in how the fluid would clash and settle by each swing.

"Eh, I just got kicked out by Feliks and Toris. They wouldn't let me touch the reports no matter how I pestered." The American sighed. His ass still ached but it subsided. The bartender was weeping about his bar being hurt. The American was surprised to see that, and the fact that the bartender was blaming Alfred for hurting 'her' made him even more surprised but Gilbert patted Alfred's shoulder, telling him not to worry about the man.

"So, how's your relationship with Toni? I bet it's pretty rocky with the conflict and all." Alfred mindlessly asked, chugging his can of Coke in one go. The albino cringed at the act but decided to answer him nonetheless. "Well, you can say that he first thought it was a joke, then I told him that I might as well try, then he got pissed. So technically, I expected him to defend Lovi, but no. He did as I asked. Surprise, surprise. But throughout the time, let's just say that he was pissed at me and Frenchie had to 'neutralize' our tension. But lately, he's not mad at me anymore. Just broken, though."

"You're seriously one fucked up dude, you know that, right?" Alfred joked. Gilbert rolled his eyes. "Hey Mr. Bartender, give me another Coke, will ya?" Alfred requested all too happily. The bartender shot him the stink eye but went ahead with his order. Somehow, the blond didn't seem to be affected by it. It makes Gilbert wonder if his cheerfulness somehow led to his oblivious character.

He sneered at him. "By the way, did you know, for about 7 or 12 days or I think it was that long, I don't know, Lovi was stammering these weird things every time I mention something like affection. Weird, right?" Alfred's choice of topic caused Gilbert to spurt out his drink. "Whoa! You okay, man?"

"Y-Yeah, just a little bit shocked, I guess," Gilbert wiped his mouth. He knew what the other was referring to but decided not to tell. It was a personal thing between him and the Italian. However, in Alfred's case, he was surprised that the albino could actually get shocked. In an ironic way, though.

"The awesome Gilbert? Shocked? That's a surprise! I'm so going to post this on Tumblr and Twitter! Not Facebook though. Can't rely on the site." Alfred was rapidly typing onto the screen of his phone. Gilbert scooted next to him, looking at his phone over his shoulder. In a matter of seconds, there were likes, reblogs, making massive amounts of notes for Tumblr while on his tweeter, there were retweets and replies like 'OMG. SRSLY?'. The American laughed to himself since that one single post had so much ppublicity just because it was about Gilbert acting out of character. Gilbert on the other hand, sneered at surprises. Seriously, does everyone expect him to be loud, obnoxious, and arrogant?

"You're one hell of a nosy kid, you know that right?" Gilbert snorted. Alfred shrugged. "It comes with the charm, I guess." The American stuck out his tongue but realized that he had almost forgotten about his drink on the counter. He tapped on the top, then popping it open. The albino decided to go back to his own drink, finishing off the last for the night.

He tapped the counter twice to grab the bartender's attention. "So, how much am I going to lose?" He joked. The bartender did his arithmetic then pulled out a paper. It stated ' 180 in total ' in bold. Gilbert gawked at the number. He frowned, taking out his wallet then checking the amount of cash he had. He hoped that he had enough.

Thankfully, he had more than enough in his wallet. He placed it on top of the counter, unhooked his jacket from the jacket holder . Just as he was about to leave, he felt someone grab his wrist. He turned around, seeing that it was Alfred, he was relieved. Would not want to get caught up in a drunk bad company, would he? Though, that would be hypocrisy to say that he was not bad company. He was already a troublemaker, would not need another one.

"Side note though. Don't mess with my secretary, got it? Best for you, best for me. Be careful. Nearly got cut by her Swiss army knife for pissing her off." Alfred chuckled as if he was joking but the albino could see past the joke. He somehow had the intuition that the Italian definitely had a Swiss army knife with her all the time. Just that he did not know where she kept it.

"Yeah, yeah." Gilbert said, waving him off. Alfred shot him a friendly wink, saluting him. "Oh yeah…" Gilbert stopped in his tracks, recalling something that might get Alfred to get back to his daily task. "Franny said he'll stop by your sister's to pick her up. Better hurry, Jones. Don't want your sister to be swept off her feet by your half-brother's cousin, would you?" He smirked, professionally stepping outside.

He grinned to himself as he heard Alfred choking on his Coke, slapping down something on the table, rushing out and barely crashing into him while calling Amelia. Gilbert stepped aside, considering what Alfred had told him before leaving the bar.

_Maybe I should listen to him... for a while until it gets fun._

* * *

A/N: Yeah, crappy chapter. Not entirely relevant but there was a review that was asking bout Antonio and Gilbert's relationship after that. Hope this one clears it up. I was wondering if you guys would prefer me to re-write Chapter 1 to Chapter 5 for proper reading, but then, I wanted to show the progress in my writing styles. Besides, I was also wondering if you guys noticed how I change the writing styles of each 1 is because I like experimenting different styles. Reason 2 is because it fits the situation better. So technically, since I can't decide for myself, should I or should I not? Keep and show the progress of my writing skills, or change it so that it's proper?

In any case, I have another fanfiction. It's titled 'Your Hand In Mine', so yeah, self-promoting. Unlike this one, it sticks to one style. I'm writing another fanfiction( a new one), so in general, I need to have a week to write all three fanfictions' new chapter, so be a dear and wait. But I'll tell the progress of completion for the chapters on my tumblr(lovino-s-dick) and twitter(CawCawFrickers).

The review, follows, and favourites are pretty lonely up there and down here, don't you think?


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Okay, right. I apologize for the sudden absence. For those of you who followed me on tumblr, as you know, I'm taking part in a convention. In any case. You also know how much I love to experiment with various writing styles, yes? Well, this chapter here is written in Lovina's POV. I can't guarantee that it's good though…

A/N(2): I'm done with the convention and I'm finally able to work on this to finish! I have another Science project and Geography project to finish but I love you guys more than my horrible school. I still can't guarantee it's good. And I can't find a suitable ending, so guys, post a review on how you expect it to end and I'll pick the best one! If there's none though, then I'll just grab an idea or something.

Ever had the feeling that your throat is choking on something gross and slimy? Covered in slime and all that shit? Also, ever had the feeling where you can actually feel **_goddamn devils pounding murderously_**on your head? Okay wait, for dramatic and more accurate effect, with **_motherfucking mallets of hell._**

Yeah, I thought so. We all hate it. And we hate it even more when we have to do some actual shit like work when we have to suffer that devilish feeling.

Now let me tell you about my morning.

First, I made sure to lock my tinted windows last night so that no sunlight could enter in the morning (Hell yeah), and second, I locked my door so that Feli couldn't run into my room, fussing over me and giving me a shitload of medicine just to make me feel better. Yeah, it'll make me feel better.

After I swallow down that bitter shit.

Anyway, I groggily got up (read: wrestled with the sheets, tossed myself out of bed, and sluggishly walked to the bathroom) and lazily took a shower (because baths are wonderful, and I don't think it's wonderful enough).

I was not prepared for the fact that the heater was not turned on.

So in general, I was bathing in the cold water of the Scandinavian seas.

…

Shut up. I need to exaggerate things sometimes.

**-Pagebreak motherfuckers-**

After all the usual morning hassle(where it involves me waking up Feli, calling the hospital for the usual morning check-up of my ward-stricken grandfather, calling Marcello to wake him up via cell phone because that demon asshole is so keen on me waking him up as soon as he knew that I woke up the earliest among us four), I could _finally _go to work.

Work.

Now let me tell you how work is for me.

I do freelance for Francis, and Arthur. Why? Because I needed cash.

'But you're having three jobs and they seem to pay well!'

Yeah, shut up. You don't understand me, and my love for the kitchen. But that's a whole different story.

But Arthur is on Thursdays and Fridays, while Francis is just whenever I was free(because of connections. Suck it, losers).

But Alfred? I work for him full-time because that big baby is always, _always_ keeping me on my toes.

Okay, enough rants. But today is Monday. Yay. So let me tell you a bit about how it is in the office with Alfred.

In the mornings, I run errands for him. Errands which I deem _useless._ Then in the afternoon, I go around town, looking for stuff in the chemist shops. I don't know what he wants exactly since almost everything he writes is all squiggly or some shit. But as I seem to get almost everything right, I pretty much just have to guess. But then again, I got almost everything right.

So when I reached work, I did the usual routine.

Grab some Starbucks for Mr. Jones and myself.

And of course, for the staff who stayed overnight. Poor saps.

**-Pagebreak hurrah-**

"So Lovi, you look seriously pale today. Wanna take a sick leave and have some rest?" Alfred asked, casually leaning on my desk like the irresponsible boss he is.

"No. I need to get work done unlike some shithead American I know." I shot back at him with a glare. His face looked disgusted. I think I looked too sick to the point it only disgusted him even more when I sniffed.

"You sure? I could get Toris to fill you in or something. I'm the boss you know!" He exclaimed, huffing.

"Oh yes. Abuse of authority at its finest. I reject the offer." I rolled my eyes, typing away and ignoring that snot that's currently dripping out of my nose.

Ew. _Ewwwwww._

Anyway,

"You look awful. I mean it. You look even paler than Gilbert! Speaking of him, how was your date, hmmmm?" He stressed out the hum. I stuck out my tongue at him. "Not for you to know. Get back to work. It's your fault I'm typing away when I'm supposed to be on a sick leave." Heh. Guilty-tripping. I love doing that.

"Aww, meanie. I heard it was great though! You and Gilly going out for a date to a place you guys don't even know. Doesn't that sound like a good scene for you?" He asked in a romantic vice that made me want to _puke _.

"What sort of reference are you making? And no, it doesn't sound like a good scene to me. It sounds more like a rape scene to me." I shivered.

"Not making any reference and that's sort of a rape joke, Lov. Not good!" He slapped my shoulder. I jolted and accidentally pressed a key way too fucking long to the point it made a long sentence with the exact same letter.

Asshole.

"The fuck, Alfred? Don't just slap me like that! And don't you think it's a little too personal to ask me?" I rubbed the place where he had slapped me with that metal hand of his. Not really metal but hell, it's like _metal._

Okay, I should stop thinking in Italics. It's just plain weird.

But it makes things easier for me to stress out.

In a way.

It doesn't even make any sense anymore. Moving on.

"There's no such thing as personal when it comes to relationships, Lov! Okay, maybe there is. But I'm saying there isn't, just maybe."

In other words, there is a thing called personal in his dictionary. Ah, good to know. Good to know.

"And I want advice from you since you hooked up with two guys." He stated simply without hesitation.

What.

Advice?

From me?

"What?" I repeated with my voice this time. I'm pretty sure and very convinced that I looked confused because he started to rub his nape and blush a bit too much. God, this guy is cute. I should probably torture him more as payback.

"I said, I wanted advice from you. I-In love, I mean…" He stammered. Someone. Give me blood bag. My boss is going to be the death of me and I'm blaming Elizaveta and her evil demonic collection of cute guys for this reaction. And some of those things she drew. I think they were called UKUS or FrUS or something. I don't know.

"Ahh. I see where this is going.." I nodded in understanding. Ah, young love. Too bad he's not young though. What? He's like 3 years older. That's pretty old if you ask me.

"So yeah, could you help me?" He lifted up his head and looked at me with pleading eyes. This boy will kill me one day and I'm blaming Elizaveta's FrUS(I remembered it! Wow.).

"Okay, which phase are you in now?" I asked, letting my chin rest on my knuckles. H knows what I mean by phases. He's the one who told me about the romance and shit and how to realize it.

"Um, confessing phase?" He said with an uneasy laugh.

Hold on a second.

I just remembered.

The only girl that this blondie here ever liked being with is Marie.

Now I see why he's uneasy.

"But you do realize that she and her brother are from the so-called, country of love?" I teased him. He opened his mouth at first to deny (of-fucking-course) but decided that I'd knew anyway, so he kept his mouth shut (yeah, he better do).

"I know, I know.. But Francis is really protective of her and he won't let me near her and and and and and and and—" I clamped his mouth shut before he said any more 'and's just to think of more words. I shushed him and wagged my finger at him.

"You know what? You came to the right person." I grinned at him.

"Oh okay. What should I do?" Straightforward bastard being straightforward.

I rubbed my chin, thinking of some sort of plan. Okay so maybe confessing to Marie in front of her brother won't be a great idea, even if they are the self-proclaimed personifications of French people. That was my first though, and I never said my first thought to anyone. Ever.

I clapped my hands, deciding to say whatever that came to my mind first.

It brought him back to reality it seemed.

"..So maybe you could bring her to a beach or something. Go reserve a table at a nice French restaurant and play some nice music for her?" Yeah, I like the sound of that plan.

"Tried. And failed." He shrugged. Whoa, fast person here.

"Hmm. Okay then. How about inviting her out but you don't tell her that you're also inviting her brother, your sister, a couple of friends together with you and you just claim your love for her there?" I said without thinking. Now why does this sound familiar?

"That sounds like how Gil did it." Alfred pouted. Oh now I see why it's familiar. But the plan was so cliché, I can't fucking believe that it happened to me. Laugh at me all you want.

"R-really? It sounds so cliché!" I stuttered.

"But it did! However…" He closed his eyes as he paused.

"This is about me. So hurry up and think of a plan!" He whined. That bastard.

"Bring her out to a beach?"

"You said that already!"

"I don't fucking know! I'm the one being brought to places I like!" I screamed back at him in frustration. Haaaah, what the fuck am I thinking. Telling him what I didn't think about thoroughly.

His eyes widened though. A good sign.

Maybe.

"That's it! I'll just bring her to places she like!" He said in an awfully sickeningly happy tone.

"Ohh, my baby's finally growing up. He's finally going to have a girl." I said as I wiped a fake tear.

Shut up. I have this sort of relationship with Alfred where he's like my son and I'm his homophobic mother. I bet 50 bucks you have this sort of relationship with your close friends or family or whatever social relationship you have.

"Riiight." He rolled his eyes. He leaned closer to my face. Too fucking close.

"Alfred. You're too close." I warned him.

" Pooo. But seriously though, how was your date with Gilbert?" He asked coyly. He smiled teasingly and I bet you, I know where this is going.

"It.. it was nice." I said, carefully choosing my words.

"Hmm. And?"

"It was nice." I said with a bit more force.

"And?" He retorted. I'm going to break if he says this for the third time.

"I said, it. Was. Nice." I made sure to stress out each word. That'll teach him. Hah.

"And I asked, And?" Stupid motherfucking hell of a douchebag who doesn't understand personal—

"Okay okay! I loved it! It was really nice and fluffy!" Oh, I used the word fluffy. Never figured I'd use it. Hmm. Maybe this is what I get for reading Elizaveta's favourite fan fiction by force and secretly writing a gay one in my jou—

Nooooo. You're not going to know what I do with my journal. Aw hell no.

"Hell yeah I knew it!" He pumped his fists in the air.

"You sound like you've been a part of this." I shook my head, already thinking of possibilities.

"Sort of."

"How?" I asked.

"Okay, so I told Ludwig about it and how boring it is always going to places you've been to before, so yeah, I told him to suggest it to his bro and fuck yeah it worked!" He placed his hands on his hips, huffing in all his glory.

I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah yeah it worked."

"And you liked it." He had to remind me.

"Yeah , I- I liked it." I said with a blush creeping up my face.

"Tell me more about it then since it doesn't seem to bother your sickness." Ah that sneaky bastard whom I see as a brother.

Oh this is going to be a long day.

**-Pagebreak whee-**

Okay, so I told the jackass(because the title bastard was overused at this point, it bored me) and with a very convincing pink hue flushing my face(read: blushing too hard) , I told him almost everything which I didn't plan at first but the jackass just had to be manipulative.

I hate him so much.

"Aww, you guys are so cute together!" He clapped his hands in joy.

"You think so?" I did a mental celebration dance as I managed to speak with stuttering.

He nodded and hummed in acknowledgement. I released a sigh that I had unconsciously kept.

Well, that was a good sign.

And I should probably smack some responsibility into this guy. Really, what kind of boss would slack off while his subordinate is trying so hard to work?

"You still look sick, though, Lov." He pouted. Aww, who knew that the fucker could pout.

"Well well well, it's because someone had been slacking off recently that I have to stay here to finish _every _single fucking paperwork. Now be a dear and _do _your part, please?" I told him with a crooked smile.

He shivered involuntarily. "You really are like a snake, aren't ya' Lov? Every word is spiked with venom."

"Wow, who knew you could be such a poet." I rolled my eyes.

I chuckled to myself when I saw him leaving, huffing in frustration as he did so.

Ah, the perks of being Lovina Vargas, and a maiden who has experience with almost everything.

Well, _almost._


End file.
